Living With You
by rainbowthefox
Summary: A collection of Elias/Chise snippets requested from Tumblr. Mahou Tsukai no Yome/Ancient Magus bride.
1. Early Morning

It's early morning when she finds him awake next to her with his skull inside a book. It was far too small for his large hands and wasn't even in comparison to the size of his skull. Chise rubbed her left eye and suddenly sat in the bed to stretch and let out her usual yawn. Elias noticed that she was awake and he momentarily slapped the book shut to look at her.

"Good morning." He said rather cheerily.

The redhead immediately questioned the situation. Elias wasn't sleeping in, it was a Sunday morning, he was reading a book, and he didn't seem at all sluggish. It couldn't be about anything that had happened yesterday because nothing really went on. And he couldn't be thinking about today because, from what she knew, there were no plans.

She said, "Good morning, Elias. Are you reading a good book?"

Elias looked back to the small piece of literature in his hand. He said, "I'm just distracting myself, really. I couldn't fall back asleep."

Just then, a sudden breeze brushed past her skin. Chise looked up and noticed that he had opened one of their windows beside the bed. She found the sight of the rising sun to be beautiful because it cast a beautiful, blended shade of orange and blue. Her admiration was soon cut short by another breeze climbing up her back and giving her goosebumps.

Almost naturally, Chise scooted closer to Elias and clung onto his arm. His touch was always warm and soothed her skin. She sighed happily at the contact and looked up at him. His white pupils had been observing her closely. She blushed at the realization that he'd been watching her the whole time.

Blandly, he asked. "Cold?"

"Yeah..." She wiped her eye. "Why are mornings so cold, anyway?"

Without hesitation, the redhead scooted over and nudged her way into Elias' lap. He extended his arms outward and froze when she nestled into his chest. He marked his page in the book and set it back on the nightstand on his side of the bed. He wrapped his arms around her small figure and gave her a brief squeeze.

He said, "I think I enjoy it being cold."

Chise looked up from his chest with green, wondrous eyes. She asked, "Why?"

Elias bundled her up in his arms and brought her closer to his neck. Chise relaxed at the contact and rested one of her hands on his shoulder and brought the other one to crane around his neck. His broad figure always made her protected whenever she was in his arms. He pulled the blankets over them and nuzzled the size of her cheek before he replied.

"-Because you cuddle me when you're chilly."


	2. Chise's Walk

She ever so rarely wandered far from their house. The redhead would go on her usual walks but they were limited only in the forest around their home. Her sudden restlessness that afternoon drove Chise to walk off of her usual trail and follow the sidewalks into the town today. The change alerted her familiar, whom had been walking by her side like usual. He always stuck with her during their walks.

"Chise?" He asked. "Where are we going?"

She shrugged and replied, "I just thought we'd expand on our walk. It's nice to get fresh air, you know?"

Ruth could tell this was rather abnormal but chose not to question her intentions. Sometimes she'd coop herself up in her room studying spells and potions to an end. It was probably better for her to wander farther today to try and relax herself before she'd push herself again. He knew she'd so because he understood her far too well. As well as someone back at home...

When the two approached a lake that sat just before the marketplace, Chise stopped. She walked over to the body of water and cautiously dipped a hand just beneath the surface. Ruth watched her intently from the side as to make sure nothing would pop out and attack her. When he heard Chise hum very faintly, he relaxed his body. He took a step forward and even dipped a paw in himself.

 _"Chise?"_

A familiar voice rang in the air. The redhead looked around them curiously but found no one else there besides them. When the voice came again, she heard it coming from beneath her. Chise glanced down and saw a familiar skull looking back up at her from the texture of the water. She smiled at the sight of him.

"Elias!"

Ruth walked over and peered into the lake himself. Chise must have communicated with him like this before because she wasn't perturbed by it. Elias gave Ruth an acknowledging glance before he turned back to the girl. His tone sounded collected but Chise knew that he was worried.

 _"You've been out for nearly two hours. Where have you gone?"_

"Oh, I...uh..." She bit her lip. "Just wanted to walk a bit farther today? Don't worry, Ruth's with me."

The dog gave her a rather tired look. Chise nudged him with her elbow and looked back at Elias. He must be out in the garden using one of the koi ponds to communicate with her. Her necklace must've gave him the location of the lake. She suddenly felt awful for making him worry. She really should have told him if she wanted to walk more today.

The image of Elias flickered for a moment. He said, _"Well, take your time. The Silky is still preparing lunch for when you come back."_

"Oh?" Chise tilted her head. "What's she making?"

 _"Her usual sandwiches and tea."_

"Ah."

. . .

Elias looked away from her image and observed something from afar. She opened her mouth to get his attention until he suddenly looked back at her. There was a disturbed emotion in his pupils and Chise could tell something was wrong. His next tone was oddly casual.

 _"You know, I saw a dog wandering here while you were gone."_

"A dog? Was it lost?"

Ruth perked up at the mention of another canine. He went a bit closer to the pond and started to sniff the water. Chise gently swatted him away so she could see Elias. It wasn't like him to bring up something small like that unless it was important. Perhaps it was another Church Grim or it was lost nearby the house. The redhead waited patiently for his response.

 _"No. Its owner was there and greeted the Silky. It just...reminded me of you, is all."_

Chise smiled, clearly flattered that he was thinking about her. Her senses soon came back and she realized that Elias probably would have been thinking about _Ruth_ and not her. Something was up and the redhead was starting to think she understood what it was.

Coyly, she leaned forward. She asked, "Elias...are you **missing** me?"

He hesitated to reply, which gave away the answer. He rubbed the back of his skull with a gloved hand and nervously looked away. The rare sight of him being flustered made Chise smile.

 _"No...?"_

"I'll start heading home right now."

He sighed in relief. _"Thank you, Chise."_

His image disappeared from the water. Her hand wandered over the part of the water where his face once was. She soon stood and started walking away from the lake and heading back home. Her pace started slow but quickened when she saw the forest come into view. By the time they were surrounded by trees, the redhead was running and had Ruth following close behind her.

He failed to notice the big grin plastered on her face the whole way.


	3. Beautiful

It had been happening a lot lately. While she was tending to the gardens, while she clipped the cottonflies, and even while she slept. This was something completely new to Chise Hatori and she wasn't sure if she'd ever get used to it. Elias would pass by her no matter what task she'd be doing and would say 4 certain words.

"You look beautiful, Chise."

It first began as an out-of-place compliment that flustered her deeply. Within 6 times of him saying it was Chise realizing that he was making a pattern. He'd tell her it at least one time per day and it was usually when she had her guard down. Today she was going to try and break him out of that habit. To try and make _him_ the surprised one.

She had been mending a button when she heard Elias' steps come into her room and stop beside her. She set down her work and looked up at at the monster with a smug look. He was in his undershirt today and she nearly fumbled trying to get him. Luck took pity on her and her tone was still strong.

"You're going to say that I'm beautiful, aren't you?'

Success!

"Actually, no. I was going to say you look _extra_ beautiful today, Chise."

The redhead slumped her shoulders in defeat. He got the best of her without even knowing it. She sighed and picked up her work to continue mending the button back on. Elias continued standing there and was staring at the wall. He seemed to be in deep thought so Chise decided this was a good time as any to finally ask him about it.

"Elias? Why do you keep telling me that I'm beautiful?"

"Because!" His pupils curved. "It's very true. You are the most elegant thing I have seen through my centuries in England."

A very, very deepened blush. Chise lowered her head and gently set down the button again. She tried her best to control herself and pretend that what he said did _not_ make her heart go a thousand miles per hour. Instead, she placed a hand on her cheek to cool herself down and tried to think of a good response.

"Have you been reading romance novels again?"

He chuckled and grabbed a seat next to her at the desk. Chise tensed when she felt their knees touch. Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest when he scooted closer to her.

"No, but when I was called to that business in the land of the fae, I heard Oberon call Titania beautiful. I looked up the word later that day and its description just instantly reminded me of you."

Chise dumbly smiled. That was so sweet of him. She never could have imagined such a romantic side to this creature that was feared by practically everyone. He could sweep anyone off of their feet using language like that. A part of her was thankful that he was hers and she let out a contempt sigh.

"...Thank you, Elias. But why do you tell me that everyday?"

"They say kind words makes someone's day. I want to make sure you are happy while you are living with me, so I want to remind you how beautiful you are whenever I can. Has it been working?"

 _If only you knew..._ Chise bit her lip. To say she was happy living with Elias was a complete understatement. She was ecstatic...extremely. His presence alone made her day but this whole 'beautiful' thing was just the cherry on top of an already delectable sundae. Slowly, she urged her hand into Elias' large one and gave it a squeeze.

"...I think you're very beautiful, too, Elias. Though the best word would probably be handsome..." She tugged at her hair shyly.

He looked breathless. He said, "You are the first to say so, Chise. I...thank you."

Chise gave him a last squeeze before she picked up her work and resumed the business with the button. Elias decided to stick around so he rested his elbow on the edge of the desk and held his skull in his gloved hand. The sunshine that came from the window beside her only reflected the radiant colors of her skin and hair. He watched his bride continue her work in peace and heard her slightly hum a melody under her breath.

She was beautiful. So very, _very_ beautiful.


	4. Consolation

It's during the aftermath that Chise realizes her mistake. She had been engrossed in her rage that she neglected to see the harm she caused around her. There always had been a soft voice in the back of her mind that warned her of such things. Looking back on it now, Chise really regretted not listening to it when it came. Maybe Ruth was the one who told her that every decision she made was reckless.

The redhead looked up and found Elias across from her. He was currently sprawled on the floor and she couldn't help but notice the black aura around him. His shape was not definite and she spotted the black blobs coming off from his attire. His white pupils met with hers for a mere moment and she took a sharp intake of breath from fear. That slit look in his eyes was...ferocious.

Had she overstepped her boundary again?

That's right. Chise had put herself through yet another catastrophe when she accidentally conjured the wrong potion during her practice. What she made gave her a prolonged scent that lured nearly all predators to her. Ruth protected her during most of it but fell useless when it came to the ones that were immune to fire. Elias had to come in and save Chise at the last second, which was ultimately causing her to go into a guilt trip.

And there he was...almost. From what she could make of it, Elias was still trying to regain his form and composure. She saw slight glimpses of his other forms flicker through his shadow body. It looked like he was barely hanging onto whatever he had. This wasn't the first time she's seen him like this, but it always make something inside her pain at the sight.

Cautiously, she took a step forward. Elias lifted his skull and still had that warning look in his eyes. Chise heard Ruth protest from behind her. The dog whimpered for a moment as he turned his body to her.

"Chise! He's not stable!" He warned.

His words fell on deaf ears. The redhead continued slowly and ignored his thoughts pouring into her mind. Elias slowly backed away from her without a word. She picked up her pace until she was only a foot in front of him. He was still on his fours and was clutching the ground beneath him tightly. As if he were holding himself back from something...

She held a pained hand to her chest. "Elias...I'm so sorry..."

Chise couldn't control the tears that started to pile in her eyes. She had done this to him. She made him do many things that wasn't good for either of them. He risked everything for her again and what did he gain? Guilt was starting to overwhelm her. Had things not turned out right in the end, she wasn't sure what she would have done...

The redhead leaned forward and slowly extended her arm out to him. Elias' eyes traveled over the sight of her hand quietly. He flinched at something and started to lean back. Chise had to take a couple steps forward so that her hand was grazing the end of his skull. She felt him stiffen at her touch.

"It's okay," She assured with a smile. "Everything is fine...I'm okay."

Slowly, the look had vanished. His pupils went back to their normal white with the shade of red on the ends. The rest of his form took the message and his mass was regained. A shadowy arm slowly rose and took a hold of her wrist. The grip was gentle and most definitely belonged to the Elias she knew. He rubbed the top of her hand and slowly got off from the ground.

Relieved, Chise rested the end of her nose on his skull. Her touch soothed him, as he had let out a slow exhale and relaxed his muscles. Elias remained that way with her and momentarily closed his eyes. His voice sounded as if it would break any second.

"I don't know what I would do if I lost you, you know."

Something in her trembled. Had she not have been resting on him, she would have fell right on the floor. Chise lightly gulped and smiled at his choice of his works. She nestled into his touch with a smile. His contact with her was cold but told her that she was protected again. If another threat were to come out of nowhere, Chise was positive he'd save her when she couldn't.

"Me too..." She mumbled.

The two of them locked hands and stayed that way for awhile. It was a silent moment that assured Chise once more that she was not alone. A threat nearly devoured her whole but was gone as soon as it came. She only had Elias to thank for that and Ruth to apologize to for not listening in advance. She was so stupid and reckless, sometimes...

These thoughts didn't trouble her. Not now, at least. Elias' touch was all she needed. To tell her that she was treasured far more than she could ever think. And her comfort to him was all he needed. When the whole world turned against him and caused the beast beneath his skin to surface...

She would be there. And if the same happened to her, he'd be there in a heartbeat. That was the beauty of their wonderful connection and everlasting love for one another.


	5. Comedy Gold

Chise was thankful to receive an allowance every week. She worked her best around the house and was often ahead in her studies, so she'd receive a good portion whenever she was paid. It gave the redhead a chance to either save up for something she wanted or simply spend it on the spot. At first, Chise refused to spend her hard-earned cash on frivolities and, instead, insisted on buying her necessities.

However, she made some exceptions here and there. One of them included a comedy book that was full of over 300 jokes. The teenager was curled up on the couch indulging herself in the variety that was labelled as "Comedy Gold". Her test subject was no one other than the man sitting across from her on the couch. Her familiar, Ruth.

"Okay, okay." Chise looked up from the book. "How about this one? 'How does NASA organize their company parties?'"

"-I don't know," Ruth replied, already regretting doing so. "How _do_ they organize their parties?"

"'They plan-et!'"

He sighed. And groaned. And also regretted his whole life. The redhead huffed at his lack of response and quickly flipped through the pages again. Ruth glanced over at her and quietly awaited the deliverance of another horrible joke. She had been trying to get him to crack a smile ever since she whipped the thing out.

" _This_ one will get you!" Chise grinned. "'My friend recently got crushed by a pile of books, but he's only got his shelf to blame.'"

He let out a low sound. "...Chise, these are really-"

"I get it." A sudden voice sounded from the kitchen. "Because the books are stacked onto a shelf. How amusing, Chise."

The two of them peeked over from the couch and found Elias Ainsworth stirring his tea inside the kitchen. Ruth felt Chise nudge his back and he only rolled his eyes in return. Of course that man would actually find these mediocre jokes funny. To Ruth, they seemed like they were ages old. Then again, he always had been called a stick in the mud.

Elias soon came into the living room and joined the two. He gently sat down his cup of tea on the coffee table and went into his usual chair. He rested his skull in his hand and looked over at Chise patiently.

"O-Oh!" She went back to her book, eager to tell another. "Okay, Elias...What do you call dangerous precipitation?"

"I'm not sure." He replied.

"-A rain of terror!"

He made a gentle rattling sound and earned a smile from Chise. She looked over at Ruth and crossed her arms playfully, winking one eye and blowing a raspberry at him.

"At least _someone_ finds my jokes funny!"

Ruth leaned back on the couch and flattened down his shirt. "Yeah, if you told me it when I was a kid. Why do you think Elias finds it funny?"

Elias looked over at Ruth and Chise was unsure if it was a glare or not. She flipped through the large book again and skimmed through the text. She was trying to find the easiest ones that could make Elias laugh. Which, thinking about it, was probably all of them.

She read, "I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me."

"Were you alright?" Elias dumbly asked. His tone was worried and he even leaned forward in the chair. Ruth laughed and started hitting his knee to calm himself down. Chise swatted at him and gave an assuring look over to her husband.

"It's just a joke, Elias! What I read from here doesn't really happen, it's just talking from different perspectives. You get it though, right?"

He looked away from her. "Ah...I believe so. Please don't worry me like that again."

"Okay, okay. Here's one I think you'll get." She cleared her throat. "What do you call a dinosaur with a extensive vocabulary? A thesaurus."

Elias snickered. Chise smiled and felt confidence fill her insides. She wasn't sure why she had been reading jokes in the first place, but it was nice to actually get an initial reaction. That was just one of the many pluses to having a monster as your boyfriend/husband...And a downside to having a stick in the mud as your familiar.

Chise placed a finger on the page and read aloud: "Learn sign language, it's very handy."

"Very clever."

"Um...How do you make Holy water? Boil the hell out of it."

An actual, genuine laugh! Hearing Elias chuckle was one thing, but an actual laugh threw her back. Joking about religion is probably his strong point, given his background and all. Chise watched Elias close his jaw and slightly wipe the end of his skull. He was on the edge of his seat by this point and was waiting for her next joke.

The two of them didn't even notice Ruth slipping into Chise's shadow. He must've gotten bored or couldn't have handled all of the awful jokes. Either or was an option, but Chise chose to ignore it. Instead, she walked over to Elias and took her usual seat on his lap. She leaned on the edge of the chair and looked for a few more jokes.

"What kinds of shoes do ninjas wear?"

"Hmm. What?"

"Sneakers!"

He chuckled again, this time wrapping an arm around her waist to make sure she wouldn't fall. Chise didn't even notice it through all her snickering. This whole time, she has had to fight back a few giggle fits. She flipped the page and read the one on top.

"What time is it when you have to go to the dentist? Tooth-hurtie."

"Dentists are the ones who work on human teeth, correct?"

"Yeah."

Elias curved his pupils in amusement. Chise smiled and rubbed the tip of his skull as she searched for more. "-What do you call a big pile of kittens? A meowntain!"

"Haha."

"I don't know if I've said this before, but-" She suddenly sat down her book. "...I really enjoy the way you laugh."

He turned his head at the realization. "-Ah. It's been awhile since I've laughed properly. Do forgive me if it came out incorrectly."

"No, no!" She waved her hands. "I actually love your laugh! It's really engaging."

"You think so?" He asked, a hopeful look gleaming in his pupils. Chise nodded and tugged at a strand of her shyly.

"Mhm..."

Elias leaned forward to grab his cup of tea and took a brief sip using the end of his skull. Chise watched him quietly before bookmarking her page and closing the book. She leaned forward to set it down on the table and felt Elias' grip tighten to support her on the chair. She came back to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He felt...relaxed.

"Hey, Elias?"

"Yes?"

"You remember when you said I've finally found my smile?" Her voice almost came to a murmur. "Well...now, I think, I've found yours."

He nuzzled her, letting an expressive noise come from his throat. "-That you have, Chise."


	6. Breakfast Date

Elias wakes at his usual time; a bit past the brink of dawn but a few hours before late morning arrives. He opens his white pupil and finds that the spot next to him is empty. He finds it's a natural occurrence to check beside him when awakening. Something along the lines of his kind being protective over their desired mates. Nothing to fret about; Chise was probably either in the gardens or practicing her conjuring.

He climbs out of bed and throws the blankets off of him lazily. His movements are almost robotic. When Elias came to the door, he had to stop in his tracks. On the upper middle - placed to his height, may he add - was a piece of paper taped to the door. He unstuck it with a scaly hand and held it up to read the scribbled message on there.

"When you're ready, meet me outside for the date.  
-Chise"

Ainsworth held the paper in his hand groggily. He was flipping through the figurative dictionary in his head. A "date"...yes, he remembered now. That romantic arrangement matter. Was it already time for another one so soon? Admittedly, he wasn't very good at keeping track of subtle manners like these. Perhaps Chise had been keeping track of their evenings together in a calendar somewhere.

Elias tucked the note away and slowly swung open the door. He made his way to the bathroom beside his master bedroom and quietly closed the door behind him. He paused for a brief moment and found that there was very little sound in the house. He could hear the Silky doing something below that was far from the kitchen. Was the brownie not preparing anything this morning?

Unknowingly, the magus inwardly smiled. What on Earth could Chise have planned now?

-

When he's dressed in his usual vest and enclosed with his black robe, Elias decides to take his leave. He checks that his clothes are properly flattened before he walked over to the front door. As soon as he lifted his skull, the magus found another piece of paper within sight. This one was taped to his level as well and had been attached to the front door.

He grabbed it and read the writing. He noticed that it was a tad bit more sloppy on this card.

"Head north and take 7 steps west. I'll be waiting.  
-Chise"

"Hmm." Elias muses. He opens the door and discards the second note in his robe's pocket. As soon as he's face-to-face within the spring scene of England, the magus lifts his skull in the direction of the sun. He stands there for a few moments and soon holds a hand up.

As traditional and odd like it sounded, Elias used his horns as an occasional way of navigation. It was too complicated to say how he came with the system, but he soon learned how to sense which direction his skull faced according to his horns. He turned on his heel in the northern direction and takes 7 steps west like instructed. He finds himself facing the direction of a hill.

He heard a couple of voices coming from the area. Elias walks over and passes through the slope with ease. As soon as he was at the bottom, he spotted a batch of red hair. Green eyes met with his and he found Chise turn to face him. She was wearing a red dress that came to her lower thigh, her necklace, a sun hat, and her pair of red sneakers. Another one of her adorable outfits, might he mention.

"-Ah!" Chise waves her hands in front of her exaggeratedly, trying to hide whatever was behind her. "Cover your eyes!"

Elias' response was to drape the cloth over his skull. He watched as Chise eyed him wearily from afar and stubbornly cross her arms.

"I know you can see through that, Elias."

"Guilty." Is all he manages. He quickly adds, "My eyes are closed. I promise."

As best as they can be, He wanted to mention. When not tiresome, it was difficult to fully shut his pupils. The best remedy was to curve them so that most of his sight was concealed. He heard Chise sigh in relief as well as some footsteps and mumbling. He catches the sound of Ruth's voice. He was mentioning something about frosting.

He listens as the two of them bicker before their voices fade. Elias tilted his skull and awaited further instructions. He soon felt a small hand come onto his back and gently usher him forward. The magus obliged and walked as far as Chise would let him. She soon gets on her tip toes and jumps to tap the end of his skull.

"-Open them!"

Elias threw the cloth back behind his skull and took a look at her "surprise". It was an ordinary picnic bench hidden just beneath one of the autumn-colored trees just outside of the household. On the table lay many plates of food and desserts, either concealed by a transparent cover or another plate. Elias made sight of sausage, bacon, eggs, fried toast, baked beans and mushrooms.

The middle of the table consisted of covered miniature muffins and pastries. He also found a pot of coffee as well as brewed tea placed to the side. Ruth was currently sitting on one side of the table in his human form, discreetly eying the meal in front of him. Elias paid no mind to Chise's familiar as he took a step forward and admired the culinary art.

"Ah. The Full English, isn't it?"

"I thought a breakfast date would be a neat idea..." She brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear shyly. Truthfully, she wasn't even sure if Elias would like it.

"Did the Silky make this?" He asked.

"Nope!" The redhead proudly boasted. "Made it all myself this morning. I got up really early to prepare our date. What do you think?"

"I'm sure it'll taste delicious..." Elias eyed the Grim at the table. Ruth's response was to chug the cup of orange juice he had in his hand. Chise scowled at him and stubbornly made her way over to the table.

"-Ignore the third wheel, Elias." She took the cup from him. "He insisted on being here."

"Third wheel?" He inquired.

"It's like..." Ruth waved his hand in the air. "A person who tags along with a couple. Usually at the worst times. But I can't help it if you two are over here with a feast on the table. I know you can't finish it all, Chise!"

He passed Chise an innocent look(which was rare nowadays), and resulted in a pitiful sigh from her. She rubbed her temples for a second, as if considering the option. She ended up giving him a firm nod.

"Fine, Ruth. You can stay. But no talking!"

Ruth held a hand up and only zipped his lips shut. He started gathering the food on his plate and Elias took this as a cue to sit down on the other side. Chise soon joined him and sat right next to him - their knees touching underneath the table. The two of them started to gather their helpings and immediately went to digging in.

Their meal consists of playful touching from Chise and romantic looks from Elias. It also consisted of Ruth rolling his eyes or looking away from them whenever the two flirted. He soon had his interest on the food and ignored what the couple was doing entirely. Chise took this chance to give a peck to Elias' skull and happily chewed down on a piece of a blueberry muffin.

"I wonder..." Elias examined his piece of fried toast. "Just what gave you the idea of leaving notes on my doors, Chise?"

She swallowed the piece of muffin and blushed. "-Well, I...I drew inspiration from the ones you leave on my desk in the afternoon. You know, the times of our sessions together and lunch you write down. I thought it'd get your attention if it was a little more personal."

He nuzzled the top of her head. "You're right. It did get my attention. I think I'll take the idea from you."

She started fumbling with the rest of the muffin in her hand. "W...What do you mean?"

"Our next one." He explained. "Another date, I suppose. What will it be, now? The 10th one?"

"Eleventh." She corrected, and laid another kiss on the the side of her husband's skull.


	7. Sleepless Nights

A sense of heat fills the teenager up to the brim. She pulls the covers off of herself to try and feel the cool air wrap around her figure - but it doesn't. The room around her is muggy and uncomfortable. Summer nights made sleeping sometimes unbearable. Just last week had she awoken in a body of sweat without any blankets. Ruth also once woke in the middle of his sleep just to pant to try and cool himself down once.

Chise Hatori finds herself in a similar situation tonight. The air is hot and her top sticks to her skin from the layer of sweat that had formed in her sleep. She undoes a couple of buttons and fans the hot air from underneath her pajamas. The teenager slowly climbs out of bed and opens one of her windows to try and air the room out.

The nightly scene that stared back at her was gorgeous. There was a full moon out tonight, which gave the trees around their house beautiful strands of white light. The way they bounced off of the leaves and shrubs almost made it seem like there was a mysterious force of being out there somewhere. And if she had learned anything from meeting the fae, there probably was.

Chise turns around and slowly opens the door out from her room. Ruth watches her carefully from the bed but does not get up. She quickly walks into the hallway before he could ask and quietly tiptoes to the room across from hers. She softly lays a knock or two on the door and hears no response. Chise was conflicted on wanting to either make her appearance or simply leaving Elias alone for the night.

But before she could turn back into her room, the door quietly opens. It goes slowly at first but as soon as she sees his white pupil meet hers, the door generously goes all the way. A shadow ducks down from the doorway and adjusts itself to match her height. Chise is almost breathless at the sight of him.

"Elias..." She breathes. "I'm sorry if I woke you up-"

"Don't be." He replies, his tone unusually quiet. "I've been awake for awhile now. Is there something you needed?"

She noticed that he was still in his pajamas. His top looked as ruffled as hers did, which meant that the heat probably got the best of him, too. The redhead couldn't help but notice the generous gap between his shirt and his neck. If they'd have been standing in direct light, Chise would have seen his lavender skin and his collarbone. Her body shivers imagining the sight.

Chise fiddles with her hands, suddenly shy from these new...thoughts. She asks, "I was wondering if you wanted to join me on a walk? It's really hot, so some fresh air would probably do us both good."

He repeats, "A walk? How funny, I was just about to head on one myself. Would you like to stroll around the forest?"

She smiles. "Yeah. That sounds good. I'll meet you downstairs."

Chise turns around and heads back into her room as quickly as she can, shutting the door behind her quietly. She turns her head and finds Ruth's red eyes staring back at her through the darkness. The redhead takes a step forward and ruffles the hair on his head.

She asks, "Coming?"

"No." He replies, yawning and stretching on the bed lazily. "-I think I'll just take over while you're gone. Be careful with Ainsworth when you're alone with him."

He lays his head down on the pillow and begins snoring before she can ask what he means. Be careful? Just what was Ruth implying? Elias hasn't snapped or done anything to her ever since...well, that incident. She decides to keep it in mind as she slips on her slippers and shuts the door behind her on her way downstairs.

-

Elias meets with his apprentice downstairs in his long, black robe. He didn't bother changing out from his pajamas and neither did Chise. She came down wearing nothing but her PJs and a pair of pink slippers. They both went out from the house without another word and quietly closed it behind them. Chise is all too eager to receive a fresh breath of cold air.

She skips onto the trail for a moment. This one leads through the forest and stretched all the way to the church that eventually led into town. The only obstacle between the two was the large, expanded area of forest that encircled their home. The sounds of crickets and rustling bushes would've discomforted her in any other situation. Since she was with Elias, however, Chise had little to fear. She actually found herself enjoying the dark depths of the forest around them.

Elias looks up at the moon and hums. "Quite beautiful. Hasn't been too long since our last full moon."

"Yeah..." Chise looks up as well. "It really fits in with the stars, don't you think?"

"Yes, it does."

They continue on with their walk without another word. The cold air around them eventually cooled Chise off. She was now softly gritting her teeth, hoping that the cold wouldn't get to her so soon. It'd be a shame to have to go back when they were only a quarter deep in the forest. No, she wanted this night stroll to be something different. Since she was with him.

Chise looked over at Elias. He was walking quietly and had his pupils transfixed on the trees around them. Ruth would often do the same thing on their walks. He'd stare at everything except the direction they were going, searching for any sign of danger or threat. Elias, however, just looked like he was trying to avoid eye contact with her for whatever reason.

The two soon come to a lake and Chise stops him. She goes off from the trail momentarily to gaze at it in awe. It was just like any other typical sight you'd see in those movies. A beautiful, full moon reflecting its white light on the waves down below. Chise had never really seen it in person; Ruth didn't like her wandering off from the path on their walks.

She smiles and clasps her hands together, taking in in the sight. "It looks gorgeous."

"Hmm." Elias replies.

She turned to him, half expecting his eyes to be locked on her instead of the moon. Him staring at the lake didn't surprise her one bit. He didn't notice it then, but Chise lightly sighed in disappointment. She took a seat on the grass and stared wordlessly at the water in front of her. Chise heard Elias plop down right behind her.

They remained like that for a few silent minutes, only the sounds of wildlife every now and then breaking the quietness. It's only until a draft comes by that Chise finally moves. She clutched at her pajamas and took a shaky breath to steady herself. Her warm breath merely turned into fog in the air around them.

The once hot, smothering feeling that had absorbed Chise's body only half an hour ago was gone. It was now replaced with a cold aura that seemed to encircle her skin. At this point, Chise wasn't quite sure which feeling she preferred over the other. She started to rub the side of her arms discreetly to try and hide it from the monster behind her.

He, of course, didn't let it go unnoticed.

Without warning, Elias suddenly leaned forward and wrapped an arm around Chise's waist. She let out a small squeak when he pulled her back towards him between his legs. He motioned his large robe around her figure and neatly pressed it down to the side of her skin. Chise felt it warm her almost instantly and she smiled at the feeling. She grabbed a hold of the ends and wrapped it around her small figure.

After a few moments, she said, "Thank you."

Elias now draped both of his arms around her waist. He rested his skull on her shoulder and replied, "Of course."

Chise glanced at him from the corner of her eye. She found that his pupils were now staring at her, trailing over the side of her face curiously. From this angle, he looked even more attractive than he already was. The moon's white shadow certainly picked and chose the best features to exaggerate.

She nuzzles the side of his skull, pulling the end of it so she can hold it close to her. Elias slowly exhaled, bringing one of his scaly hands up to her shoulder. The two of them continued to sit there like that, neither one of them moving from their spot. Chise starts caressing the top of his fangs and looks back to the water curiously.

"We should have a camp out," She randomly suggested.

"Now why do that when we've got a house?" Elias asks, softly rubbing her ear. She shyly shrugs.

"I don't know...it just sounds really fun. Sleeping out in the wilderness, making s'mores, fishing..."

She turns to him on the last word, lip slightly stuck out and her eyes suddenly exaggerated. Elias lifts his skull and stares into her green eyes thoughtfully. He knew what she was doing. Yet another moment of her "puppy eyes", which often worked in her favor. He soon sighs in defeat.

"Alright. We'll do it sometime."

Chise closes her eyes and leans into his palm. "Works like a charm..."

"Mmph."


	8. Selfie

Chise trails her index finger over the glass surface of the device held in her hands. A beep sounded from it a moment after and she smiles in satisfaction. She uses her finger to swipe to the left, then to right, and then to the let again. Her green eyes are fixated on the device and she does not move from her position on the couch. The crook of her back was on the armrest of the couch and the rest of her upper body hung lazily just above the floor.

Ruth circles around the couch before he finds her head. She still doesn't look away from the device, which gives him the idea to sniff it. Immediately, she bats his nose away and sits back up on the couch. A few cracks came from her back and she let out a pained noise and rested one of her hands on her waist.

"Ouch..." Chise cringed. She rubbed it in hopes of easing the pain.

"That's what you get for playing that thing for an hour now." Ruth retorted, swiftly changing to his human form. "Just _what_ has you occupied?"

"It's this app I found!" The redhead grinned, sitting properly this time. "It's called Subway Surfers. Not to brag, but I've finally beaten Alice's high score."

Ruth was lost three words in. She received a mobile phone last week, which was gifted from the College. They ran a background check and found that it was actually a legit smartphone. For some reason, they wanted to give Chise something that was "one of the few examples of modern technology". Ruth was sure that it was a gimmick to try and get her on their side, but all it did instead was have her glue her eyes glued on it for 2 days.

She suddenly laid back down on the couch, immediately going back to playing the game. Ruth lowered his head to try and get a look at what was on the screen. He couldn't quite make out what was on it exactly. He huffed and suddenly crossed his arms. Chise was never lazy before and he _wasn't_ going to deal with it now.

"Maybe you can study for tomorrow's lesson with Ainworth?" Ruth suggested. "It's more productive than that game you're playing."

Chise waved her hand dismissively. "-I already memorized the terms and practiced the other day."

"Then you can tend to the garden?"

"Silky took care of that for me already."

Ruth sighed and dropped his arms to his sides. He said, "Chise, you've got to do _something_. That phone is supposed to be for calls and messaging when you NEED it."

Chise momentarily paused the game and looked over at her familiar. She gave him a warm smile, which deflated Ruth entirely. She said, "Ruth, don't worry. I'm just enjoying the apps and games that come _with_ it. Nothing bad about that."

"Rather than eye strain?" Ruth arched his eyebrow. She shook her head and continued playing the game.

"You worry too much. I've gotten all my chores done and I've got nothing else to do. Maybe this can give you some alone time that you don't have to spend with me?"

Ruth stared at her silently. Chise took this as a cue that he was done talking and went back to focusing on the game. She had a point, but it dismissed the situation at hand. And it was made clear to him that she wasn't going to budge. If this phone thing became an unhealthy obsession to her, then he'd have a hell of a time monitoring her thoughts and magic.

* * *

"Ainsworth, Chise needs your help."

Ruth pattered into Elias' study. It was connected to the library and had a small section where the monster would normally stay in and sort the mail and bills. Instead of taking matters into Ruth's own hands, he decided that consulting Chise's husband was a far better idea. Mostly because she would probably listen to him better and not dismiss what he had to say. From what he assumed, anyway.

Elias looked up from the envelopes he had in his gloved hands. He quickly set them down and stood in the chair worriedly. "Is she okay!?"

"What? Oh, yeah. She's fine." Ruth sighed. "I meant that she needs help. With that new phone of hers."

"The device the college gave her?" Elias asked. "What about it?"

Ruth turned into his human form and leaned over on Elias' desk. He said, "She won't look up from the damn thing, firstly. And second, she's been on the same game for an hour now. I'm worried this is going to turn into some kind of obsession."

Elias' skull looked to the ground, contemplating for a second. He looked up and said, "I see what you mean...I'll try my best."

He made his way around the desk and walked down the hallway. Ruth followed behind him and watched as Elias came into the living room. The two of them found Chise on the couch still in the same position, with her eyes locked on the phone and not them. She must've not heard Elias come in because she was still playing the game. Elias took a step forward and observed the scene without a word.

"Chise?" He asked.

"Oh!" She paused the game right away. "Elias! What do you need?"

She sat up straight on the couch, as if she were caught doing something wrong. Elias glanced at the phone in her hand and stood there for a moment. Ruth suddenly nudged his side and snapped him back into reality. He murmured an "oh, right" and turned back to his apprentice with his arms behind his lower back.

"Just what has you so fascinated with that phone?" He inquired.

Chise looked down to the small device back in her hands. She smiled at the question and turned it down to flip through her homepage. "It comes with games and it's really fun to explore around with."

"What's in it?" Elias asked, suddenly sitting down beside her. Ruth groaned and turned away from the two.

"Well, there's the games and apps. There's also a lot of ways to message and call people. Either vocally or by video, I guess."

"And that interests you?"

Chise debated it for a moment. She looked back to it with a smile and suddenly nodded. "Yeah, and it reminds me of Japan. These were kind of everywhere."

She looked up at Elias and noticed that he was eying the device for himself. He was probably curious about it, which made sense because he was centuries old. She suddenly ushered it into his large hands and turned it on for him. He fumbled with it for a moment until he had it firmly gripped in his hands. The thing looked so small that it almost caused Chise to giggle.

"Try it for yourself!" She leaned over him and swiped the screen with her finger. "You can do this to look around and if you want to go on something, tap it."

Elias went to mimic her movements but the screen didn't budge. He tapped on the App icon and nothing happened. Chise suddenly took it out from his hands and tried for herself. The screen immediately moved and she looked back at his hands curiously. She immediately realized what the problem was.

"You might want to take off your gloves." She suggested.

He obliged, slipping the one on his right off and setting it to the side. She gave him it back and Elias held the back of the phone with his left hand. He went to swipe with his right and the phone actually moved. He played around with this for awhile until he suddenly tapped on an app. Chise noticed that he opened YouTube.

"Oh!" She suddenly took it from his hands. "This one has a bunch of videos and music. I'll play something for you."

Chise browsed through her History, then tapped on her new music playlist she made earlier that day. She scrolled through until she found one song she listened to nonstop the other day. She tapped on it and held it up in the air to wait for it to play. The sound of it coming on startled Elias for a moment.

"Where on Earth is that coming from?" He asked.

"There's some speakers on the bottom of the phone." Chise pointed to them. "The slot next to it is so you can plug in some headphones and earbuds if you want to listen to it yourself."

Elias was completely lost. "Headphones? Earbuds?"

He was updated with terms in relation to computers, but not _phones_. This must be some sort of evolution that correlated the two. This "phone" was very small compared to the computers he worked with before. And it mostly revolved around touch, whereas a computer only had contact via mouse and keyboard. This thing was far more different.

"Devices that let you listen to something only exclusive to your ears." She explained.

Elias stared at her. Chise realized that this monster did not _have_ ears. She blushed and rubbed her cheek in embarrassment. She paused the video and pressed the button that took her back to the home screen. It'd be impossible getting Elias accustomed to this thing. Maybe he would recognize something else?

She hesitated before opening up her Gallery. She browsed through the few pictures she took when she first got the phone. To test out the camera, of course. She snapped a picture of Ruth chasing a Cottonfly and also took a picture of the flowers that were blooming in the garden. She stopped at the most recent one, which was a selfie she took just that morning in their bed.

Shyly, she tapped on the picture and enhanced it. She held it up to Elias' eye level and tried to cover the blush on her cheeks.

"...This is one of the photos I've taken..." She looked away from him. "Do you like it?"

"It's a photograph," Elias took the phone out from her hands, observing the image himself. He sounded much more familiar with this. "It looks wonderful. You took this on my side of the bed, didn't you?"

"Yeah...you really think it's wonderful?" She asked. He nodded.

"Yes, it really captured the saturation far better than those traditional what-nots. _This_ is the camera, I'm assuming?"

Elias pointed to the circular lens on the back of the phone. Chise smiled and nodded. So he _was_ recognizing something about this! She'd have to take that to her advantage. She took the phone from his hands and switched to the Camera. She grinned and held the phone up to try and get his frame in the picture.

"I'll take one of you, Elias!" She exclaimed. He looked like he wanted to protest, but only sat there instead.

It didn't work, anyway. Chise couldn't get his body nor skull properly spaced in the picture. She'd have to get up and back up to the wall just to get a proper shot of him. She soon sighed and held the phone down, looking a bit disappointed. A sudden idea came to her and she flipped the camera. She looked up at Elias and motioned him to come down to her level.

"Hmm?" He asked.

"I'll take a picture _with_ you." She suggested. "But you've got to come down here."

He obliged, leaning down so that his skull was next to her head. Chise smiled and nuzzled the side of it. She extended her arm so that the camera had some space between them. Chise held it up in the air and snapped a shot at the most flattering angle. Elias immediately sat back up and cracked his back.

Chise was too occupied looking at the picture now. It turned out great! Elias' eyes found the lens and his black vest gave him a flattering outfit. Chise didn't look too bad herself...her eyes popped out beautifully and she looked really happy. That was probably because she had been nuzzling her husband at the time.

The teenager was now staring at the photo with a dumb grin on her face. Elias leaned down and observed it for himself. He gave her a quick nuzzle on the forehead and looked back to the image to observe it better. He was probably admiring the lighting or contrast.

"I think this one looks far more better." He commented, pointing at Chise's face on the screen. "You look far more happier than you did in that last one. I wonder why"

The words left her lips faster than she could think. "Because I'm with _you_ in this one."

He stared at her for a moment, sounding a little breathless. Chise opened her mouth to say something else until he suddenly curved his pupils. He said, "-How flattering, Chise. I'm sure that's the happiest I've looked in awhile as well."

She glanced back at the screen and noticed the glint in his pupils. A subtle sign that he was smiling even if his skull couldn't express it. She smiled and nodded. "Yeah. You really do."

Chise turned the phone away from his line of sight. She quickly went onto Facebook and changed her wallpaper on the profile to the photo they just took. The background really complimented her profile image, which was the selfie they looked at earlier. She smiled and went back to Elias' side, flipping through the list of apps she had.

"Anything else you'd like to see?"

"I am curious about one thing." He rubbed the back of his skull. "Is there anything that'll remind you of something so you don't forget? I've got a few things I need to do, but the alarm on the clock is broken."

"Oh, yeah." Chise flipped to her Calendar and set it up. "Enter the dates and information about the events. I'll remind you about them when they come up."

"Ah..." Elias took the phone from her. He saw the keyboard pop up and tapped one of the letters. His large fingers were difficult to navigate through the keys, but he didn't seem to have any trouble. Chise watched as he entered the events before he handed it back to her.

Chise, a little curious, took a quick glance through what he entered. She noticed something marked on a date that was all too familiar to her. She looked up at him and blinked.

"You entered my birthday?" She asked. "Why?"

"Stella made it seem like it was an important event, so I'll have that marked down as so." He replied.

Chise smiled at him, then decided to go through the rest of the events. She flipped through the months and read the many appointments he had. Some were to meet at the Church, some were simply task reminders, and others didn't seem too important. But one specific detail didn't slip Chise's mind.

On the month that they had met, the very specific day he took her into his home, was labelled as " **Anniversary** ". Chise's breath hitched in her throat. She quickly looked over at Elias with a blush spread on her cheeks. He looked down at her curiously and didn't seem to notice what she had just seen.

"Yes?" He asked. Chise's blush deepened and she quickly looked away.

"Never mind..."

Ruth, whom had been across the room the whole time, snorted. The two of them didn't seem like they'd be getting up anytime soon, so the dog finally decided to take his leave. Maybe he'd start doing tasks by himself. Picking up hobbies. Maybe convince Chise to get him a phone, too, so he could get back at her by this lack of attention.

Just maybe.


	9. A Cold Night

The nights were usually cold in London, but this one seemed the coldest. And not because of the frost climbing up the windows or the breezes outside, but because something was missing. No, not something - some _one_. A man whose presence warmed the one he loved and encased with protection. Without him, the home seemed rather empty. And definitely more cold.

Laying in bed in the middle of the night, Chise Hatori had to admit one thing. Elias' side was much more warmer than hers. Even the bed they shared felt deserted when he wasn't there. Elias took up a lot of space, there was no denying that, and he was usually the source of warmth for the two of them. But the gaping hole that engulfed her heart was probably more out of emotion than it was longing for his physical presence.

The redhead was now staring at the ceiling in thought. The room was completely dark and quiet, save for the occasional snore from her familiar down by her feet. She thought sleeping in Elias' spot would have distracted her, but all it did was make her miss him more. Was this how he felt when she wasn't there? This cold feeling was all too familiar, but she didn't like experiencing it _now_. Not when she was married to the man.

After awhile, Chise clutches his pillow and briefly smells it. His musk still lingered, though very faintly. She takes one last inhale before sliding over to the side of the bed and humming lowly. This wakes Ruth up, who yawns almost instantly and blinks his red eyes in the darkness. His eyes adjusted right to the sight of Chise staring at the nightstand beside the bed. He tuned his head and noticed that she was looking at a picture of her and Elias.

"Do you think I depend on him too much?" She asks, her voice unusually low.

Ruth sat up in the bed, trying his best to recognize the look on her face. He lowers his head and momentarily closes his eyes, trying to think of a right response. The familiar himself was quite unsure of the answer. And that was probably because Chise was, too.

"What if you do?" The dog shrugged. "Depending on another isn't a bad thing. It gives you a purpose."

Chise suddenly sat up in bed. She clutched the covers and pulled them over her lap, now staring at the blankets in silence. After awhile, she sighs and closes her eyes.

"I'm pathetic. I can't go 4 days without feeling as lonely as I did before I met him."

"That's not pathetic," Ruth inched closer to her. "That's just missing someone. Hell, if you were gone for that long, I'd feel that way, too."

The redhead smiled and reached over to pet him. Ruth nuzzled in her touch and closed his eyes at the contact. He was warm, too, but not nearly as much as Elias. Ruth was more like a brother to her than anything. She withdrew her hand and started fidgeting with the covers. She now wore a long frown and was bowing her head rather low. Ruth could tell she was starting to feel depressed.

"Without him, I wouldn't even _be_ here." She suddenly chokes. "I'd probably be sleeping on the floor somewhere else. With someone who only uses me as the Slay Vega I am."

Ruth perked up at the sound of her weeping. Oh, no. She was having more mood swings. He turned into his human form and leaned over Chise, placing a soothing hand on her shoulder. He does his best to rub her side and show her that he's there. Her thoughts, however, prove otherwise.

The familiar smiles hopefully. "Look, he's probably missing you right now, too. I just know it. But don't go thinking about _ifs_ and what could have happened. You're married, you have a home, and you have a family now, Chise."

She looks up from her hands. Her green eyes are moist but no more tears fall. She sniffles and finally smiles, easing Ruth beside her. He removed his hand from her shoulder and smiled at the sight of Chise. She always looked much more better when she was happy.

"I spent all my time moping about Isabel. Waiting for her..." He bites his lip involuntarily. "But, eventually, I had to face the facts. And now you have to, too. She can't come back for me, but you and I damn well know Elias will be back here for you."

"Oh, Ruth-" She placed a hand atop his head, ruffing his black hair. "Don't compare me and Elias to you and Isabel. We talked about that, remember?"

He sulked. "Yeah, yeah. But you get my point, right?"

She nodded, muttering an "mhm" before laying back on the bed. Chise now has a smile on her face, clearly moved by his assurance. Ruth morphs back into his dog form and goes back to his spot on the end of his bed. He plops down and almost immediately falls back asleep. The redhead rolled her eyes and pulled the covers back on top of her. Silly dog.

The scent of Elias comes back, and Chise squeezes the blanket with delight. Her body naturally longed for him and that was natural. There would never be a time that she didn't miss him when he was gone. How couldn't she? It's not like everyone had their own skull-headed magus as your husband and teacher.

She cuddles his pillow, now taking in his scent without any hesitation. A big smile is plastered onto her face now. Thoughts of Elias returning and the feel of his body next to hers brings her wonderful yet tingly feelings in her body. She slowly closes her eyes and starts to drift back to sleep. She mutters something before she's fast asleep for the long, cold night.

"I guess that's what happens when you love someone."


	10. Ticklish

He always strove for this kind contentment.

Elias once admitted solely to Chise that he enjoyed affection. Whether it'd be kissing, sleeping next to each other, nuzzling, or simply just being with her. It was a bizarre feeling that soon flourished into a warm one that he now enjoyed. He learned that, to human emotion, it was love. And if he recalled correctly, he told the redhead: "I just enjoy the tingling feeling I get when we cuddle."

It seemed like she would take that to her grave.

Because today, right after her lessons were finished and the chores were complete, Chise insisted in spending some time with Elias. She shooed away her familiar, Ruth, so that they could be alone. Elias presumed the Grim was out either chasing cottonflies again or exploring the depths of the forest. At first, him and Chise were reflecting on the lesson for the day, and in the next moment she's in his lap holding his hands and telling him all sorts of stories and memories from her childhood.

Chise is practically rambling now and the sound of her voice is like music to Elias'...well, horns. He knows now that it could put him to sleep. The tranquil noise of her singing a soft melody is all that would do it. But she's refused to sing anymore after that incident. So Elias decides to relish in the sound of her murmuring and talking, all the while listening to everything she has to say.

In the midst of her rambling on about how his gloves remind her of cartoons, Elias leans forward and nuzzles the size of her head. Instead of feeling her relaxing at his touch as usual, she tenses. The two of them pause what they're doing. For a moment, Elias could've sworn he saw her tilt her head away from him. Briefly, he tries again, nuzzling the side of her head with the end of his jaw. Chise tenses and leans away again, now looking at him with surprise.

"Is something the matter?" He asks.

"N-No..." She looks away, squeezing his hands again.

Elias takes this chance to try again and the same result happens. He lets go of her hands but Chise quickly grabs back at them. When his skull brushes her hair, she lets out a very faint yet involuntary squeak. Elias pauses at this and looks at her. She does her best to avoid eye contact with him and clears her throat out of nervousness.

"Um, as I was saying-"

"You've never made that noise before."

His orbs are locked on her in concern. Normally, creatures would squeak under pressure or fear. Elias knew humans were different, but he still didn't want to make Chise uncomfortable or scared. That'd defeat his whole purpose on welcoming her here. The redhead finally notices that he's staring at her and sighs. She hunches her shoulder up on the side that Elias nuzzled her.

"I'm just ticklish there." She admitted.

The monster perked up. Ticklish? That was a rather odd spot to be ticklish, he thought. A part of him thought Chise wasn't even capable of being tickled. She looks away from him slowly and goes back to rubbing the ends of his fingers. Chise opened her mouth to resume her bantering but stops when she feels him nuzzle her head again. This time, a giggle escapes from her mouth. It seems like she's been holding it back this whole time.

Elias, amused that he got the better of her, does it again. She lightly swats at his skull with a big smile on her face. She's giggling now, and the noise only fuels him more. He holds her shoulders down temporarily as he gently stroked his skull against her head. She fights against his grip and finally lets out a laugh.

"El-ias! Stop!"

He removes his skull but keeps his grip on her shoulders. Chise looks back at him worriedly while he eyes the rest of her body. Their eyes meet for a moment and he can tell that she's nervous. His gaze finally rests on her stomach and he hears her take a sharp intake of breath. So _that_ must be another ticklish spot.

"I just think it's cute..." His hand inches closer to her tummy. "-When you laugh."

Without warning, he lifts up her t-shirt and exposes the sight of her flat stomach. She gasps and tries to go to cover it, but he easily holds her down. His gloved hand traces over her stomach, eagerly trying to find the spot. When his fingers rest just above her bellybutton, he feels Chise flinch. And that's all it takes for him to start tickling her mercilessly.

The redhead fights against his grip while laughing. All this does is encourage Elias further as he starts to explore around. He nuzzles her neck and feels her crane it away from him. He rubs against it some more while he continues tickling her stomach, and this starts to become unfair play. Chise kicks at the air while she tries to nudge him off. Her laughs are now gasps and there are tears trickling down her cheeks.

 **"ELIAS! IT T-TICKLES! STOP! PLEASE!"**

He finally lets go of her, letting Chise collapse in his lap and catch her breath. She flattens her shirt down and momentarily blushes. She seemed to realize that she was still in Elias' lap, so she crawled out and went to the other side of the couch. She looks back at him with a face of betrayal. This only makes Elias laugh. He leaned forward and motioned her to come back. She shakes her head and crosses her arms stubbornly.

"No!" Chise bites her lip, trying to hide a smile. "You play unfair!"

"What are you talking about?" Elias asked, his tone innocent. "I just love the sound of your laugh. Is that so bad?"

She pointed an accusing finger at him. "-That doesn't mean you should tickle me! It's really unbearable for humans, you know. They used to tickle people for torture-"

"Come back, Chise."

"No!"

A guilty feeling starts gnawing at his chest. The redhead is now at the end of the couch and looking away from him with her arms crossed. He probably shouldn't have tickled her as much as he did, but he couldn't help it. It was so adorable! At least now he knows how sensitive tickling is for humans. This suddenly sparks an idea in his mind. He leans on the armrest of the couch and rests his skull in his gloved hand.

"My kind are ticklish, too."

She looks back at him, a spark of curiosity in her eyes. "Oh?"

He taps his jaw and nods. "-Yes, but we're affected by it differently. I won't tell you how, but you can come over here and try to tickle me if you'd like."

Chise sits there in silence for a moment or two. Slowly, she succumbs to her interest and crawls back into his lap. She turned herself so that she's now facing Elias. Chise hesitated before resting a hand on his chest and slowly drag it around. He doesn't seem to be reacting to it at all. She looked up and found no expression through his eyes, either. She covers his whole abdomen area before giving up and huffing.

"You were close," He hints.

He takes her hand and rests it back on his stomach. Chise shivers at the contact - she's seen what was below. Slowly, she travels to his side and feels him jump a bit. A grin spreads on her face. She pokes it again and feels him flinch once more. Aha! She's found it!

She tickles him on his left side and hears him chatter his back teeth. This would've encouraged her, but Chise noticed something right off the bat. He wasn't as jumpy or reactive as she'd been hoping. No, he was acting...differently. Chise continued tickling him and found that he actually relaxed. She itched lower and widened her eyes when she saw his pupils curve. She withdrew her hand stubbornly and gave him a glare.

"What?" He asked.

"I was hoping to get revenge! What's the point of tickling you if you _enjoy_ it?"

"It feels nice," He places her hand back on his side. "-Do it again."

Chise sighed and decided to tickle his other side. He laughed a bit harder this time and leaned forward into her touch. Admittedly, this isn't what she wanted, but...his reaction was just as adorable. At least she wasn't hurting him by doing this. When she tried tickling Ruth, she accidentally got a bit too rough. Safe to say, he didn't like being tickled anymore.

While she was tickling his side, Elias decided to take advantage of this time. He leaned forward and tickled the end of Chise's foot. This completely threw her off, so Elias grabbed her and started tickling her from the neck again. She fought against his grip, scolding his name over and over, but ended up succumbing to it. She reached for his side and tickled him while he tickled her.

It's clear that there's no winner to their tickle fight, but one thing was made certain. Chise was starting to learn more about Elias and the same could be said about him with her. It was an unfair advantage for him to know that she was ticklish, but Chise had faith he wouldn't abuse it. Ruth probably would, but not Elias. At least now she'd know where to scratch if he ever had problems sleeping beside her.


	11. Love

**have you written anything about that moron elias finally realizing he's in love?**

* * *

He flips a page of the book held in his hands absentmindedly. Its contents are thick and the cover is a shade of bright blue. His orbs scan the text for a moment until they turn, analyzing one next over. He flips it again, repeats the process, and ultimately sighs when he finds he's on page 65. Of the 100 pages, it's taken him this long to find the word he was searching for.

His gloved hand stops momentarily as he scans a fresh page. There's a word in the middle of it that stuck out to him. One consisting of 4 letters and 1 syllable. The word he's been trying not to notice furtively after all these months. His eyes slowly scan over the text and absorb its definition.

 _love  
ləv  
noun  
noun: love; plural noun: loves_

1.  
an intense feeling of deep affection.

Elias Ainsworth slammed the Dictionary shut and set it aside on his desk. He keeps the page bookmarked, of course. In case he'd ever need a refreshment of what it truly meant. He'd heard around that "love" meant very differently to creatures and humans. Its definition was too general for his taste and he was finding it rather difficult to comprehend its context.

He found that "love", itself, was quite interpretative. He considered the relationships around him for an example. Titania and Oberon's marriage could have been viewed from any angle. He found chemistry between the two, despite their behavior around each other and their signs of affection. Compared to the couples he'd find wandering London, their attraction for each other was very...unique.

Elias took that into mind when he thought about himself and Chise. Granted, he wasn't very experienced with these types of things. He had been aware of the word before but only contemplated its meaning after meeting... _her_. He'd never forget the day. Mainly because he spent 500 million pounds in one afternoon, but also because of how Chise looked. She was thin to the bone, eyes bagged due to sleep deprivation, and her posture poor because of previous depression. He had found a broken girl and bought her right on the spot.

But it wasn't _that_ which drew him in. After she met and familiarized with Ruth, Chise had begun blossoming beautifully. Physically, she was full of color and finally had a healthy amount of weight. And after a few nights of sleeping in a generous bed, her eyes were full of life and energy. She began opening up to him the more time he'd spent with her, going in depth about her life with her family and of her past. Which wasn't all that interesting, but it certainly meant a lot to him, nonetheless.

The monster leaned back in his chair, resting his jaw on the tip of his fingers as he looked around the room casually. There was no doubting it now. He felt differently about her from the other humans he'd met. Elias was hostile with Simon and he absolutely hated children, but he made Chise an exception. And she proved to him that it certainly was the trouble. She'd given life to their home and now gave Elias a reason to return back to the place entirely. _Her._

And he _loved_ her.

The thought of it confused Elias. After all of these years he spent isolated from their species, he felt a human emotion. And he happened to feel it exclusively for Chise and Chise alone. He finally met the one who'd become his mate, but he was starting to feel unsure of her reciprocation. Her confession to him had been dismissed awhile ago, so, if anything, he had just let her down when he felt quite the opposite.

Elias stared down at the papers scattered across his desk quietly. They were an assortment of of bills and letters. He kept one separated from the rest, and it contained a list of things he'd been meaning to do. As he crossed one out every day, it seemed a new one would appear only moments after. And it was often caused by Chise needing something or making plans with him at the last minute.

He leaned forward and took a pen off from the side of the desk. He added a new bullet to the list, making sure it was brief and to the point so he wouldn't overthink it. After he was done writing, he clicked the pen off and sat back in his chair. His orbs observed the words he'd written down intently.

 _-Confess to Chise._

His gaze slowly crawled up the list, making note of how many things he was already supposed to do. By this rate, his confessed to her would be within a week. And he wasn't so sure if confessing to her by then was a good idea. Her duration as a Slay Vega was diminishing, and he knew it well. That thought gnawed at his insides and made him squeeze his hand in temporary worry.

"I'll get to it eventually," He assured himself, picking up the pair and looking through it. "After all, I'm sure she feels the same. Surely my meeting with the Church isn't as important..."

Elias shook his skull, mentally scolding himself for even debating the idea of crossing a task out. His work for the church was necessary to prove himself useful. At the same time, confessing his feelings for Chise also seemed, if not more, important. Maybe her feelings had slipped for him overtime since he gave her the wrong idea? Of not understanding human emotions enough to feel the same for her?

He sighed again at the sad thought. Even if his love wasn't returned, he wouldn't make things awkward. Chise was his student and apprentice at best. If she didn't yearn for him as a lover like he did, then he could at least provide her with his knowledge of magic and fae. That way they would still rely on one another, even if Chise didn't feel the same for him.

And, in a week, he'd know for sure.


	12. Late Night Bookworm

"You really have a lot of old classics in your library, Elias."

The redhead rubbed the end of her eye for a moment. She brings her hand back to grasp the back of the cover of the book held in her hands. It's relatively small, but still fit snugly into her hands and had just the right amount of weight to it. The text could be a lot bigger but Chise Hatori wasn't complaining. She was actually infatuated with the story past beyond the rich ink. It was one of the oldest classics out there from what she's heard - _Hamlet_.

Elias was actually surprised to learn that she hasn't read nearly half of what he had. When she browsed through his library, she became interested at the known titles and admitted that she had never read Shakespeare. Or Edgar Allen Poe. Or any other classic author, really. It made sense when he thought about it, but it still surprised the magus, nonetheless.

Most of his library consisted of either fiction or documents. Being on Earth for centuries really gave him the chance to collect any literature he found interesting. To humans now, it probably was all boring because they weren't contemporaries. A part of him was relieved that Chise found pleasure in indulging herself in what he had. She already went through 3 other books of his and was still going.

Elias rubbed the side of Chise's cheek with a gloved thumb. She was getting tired now and he could tell from this angle. She settled onto his lap right when she began reading and hasn't left since. Eventually, the monster's back started to hurt so he had to lay back on the couch. It didn't stop the redead from laying on top of him and resume reading the book. It seemed like she wanted to be within his touch while she read the literature and he had no complaints about it, either.

"Tired?" He asked. She groaned.

"No, I'm fine. I just really want to get through this...chapter..."

She yawned at the end of the sentence. She glared at Elias afterward in case he'd say anything. The monster simply remained quiet, which gave her the chance to go back to the book. He actually found it cute that she insisted to stay up. It was flattering, really - especially since she was on top of him. He came to enjoy feeling her touch, so laying with her on the couch was more like heaven for him. He grew to like toying with her hair and feeling the ends of it.

Elias continued laying there with her and watched the sunset get darker from a nearby window. He felt Chise's grip on the book soon loosen as it slowly lowered to her body. He watched with interest as she gently set it on top of her chest and rested the side of her head onto his skull. He tensed at this sudden contact and waited for what else would happen.

As soon as he heard her lightly snore, he relaxed. She had fallen asleep. How adorable. The monster gently gripped her shoulder and rubbed it gently. He waited a few minutes before reaching forward and carefully taking the book from her hands. He bookmarked the page for her and set it on a nearby coffee table. She stirred a bit on his chest but soon settled back on the top of his vest with a smile.

"I knew you were fatigued," He patted her stomach softly. Her response was to nuzzle his chest further.

He'd never get tired of nights like these. "Cuddling" on the couch proved to be really enjoyable, and Elias had very minimal complaints. He could probably go a full week laying down on anything with Chise. And these warm feelings...They usually came to him whenever he and Chise were close together. And instances like this was just one of the many factors that gave him this warm sensation. He'd proudly say that he'd never grow tired of it.

Slowly but surely, Elias rose from the couch and held onto Chise's back to ensure she wouldn't fall. She gripped the end of his vest and simply pulled onto him tighter. He put another hand under her waist and stood. He walked through the hallway and up the stairs, grasping Chise in his hands and gently making his way through the door of her bedroom. As soon as he was sure she was still asleep, the monster leaned down and carefully placed the redhead down on her bed.

He motioned her underneath the blankets and tucked her in from shoulder to shoulder. Something about this was upsetting him, but he couldn't place a finger on what it was. He felt something urge him to join Chise in the bed, so he carefully slipped off his shoes and set them aside. The monster carefully climbed over her small figure and settled beside her, nuzzling his skull on her shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her and motioned her back to his stomach protectively.

"I was hoping you'd do that," She quietly admitted.

She trailed her finger on the front of his fang slightly. Elias held onto her tighter as he motioned the blankets over himself. He was rather glad he joined her. The nights sometimes went real cold when he placed her back in her bedroom rather than beside him. And if cuddling on the couch made him warm, then so should sleeping with her, too.

"I learn more about you everyday," He slipped off his gloves. "I can probably start making assumptions on what you want, Chise."

"Really?" She asked amusingly. She turned around to face her husband and teasingly poked him on the skull. "Then what do I want _now?_ "

Elias pretended to think about it. "Hmm. I'd say...you really don't want me leaving your side in the middle of the night."

She bit her lip and looked away. "Yeah...you're right. But I wasn't thinking about that."

"Oh?" He asked.

She went forward and tucked her head under his skull. Elias tensed and waited for her to say something, but she never did. She rubbed the side of her cheek on his collar instead and scooted as close to him as she could. Slowly but drearily, she started to daze off without another word. Elias placed his hand on her back and heard the soft sound of her breathing start to steady. He rubbed her back and continued to listen to the delightful noise.

Right before she fell asleep, he heard her murmur. "I want...to dream about you..."

He could say the same, really.


	13. Beach Day

It was so odd to see Elias' bare skin.

Ruth, himself, hadn't been too sure as to what he looked like underneath his usual attire. His neck, with the exception of occasional forearm, was the only thing visible showing his "true" skin on a normal basis. From what he could see, at those rare glances, was that Elias had an irregular tint of skin. It was a dark shade of purple that would best be described as "fig".

Elias Ainsworth's anatomy also was quite the guess. He had a very muscular type of body that complimented his broad frame. His skull, in comparison to the build of his abs and stomach, would've been quite the revelation to humans. To Chise, of course, it was nothing out of the ordinary. Ruth assumed that she'd seen him like this before and that a shirtless Elias wasn't new for his familiar.

"Why must you stare?"

The magus' voice snapped Ruth back into reality. He hadn't realized that his eyes had been glued on Elias ever since he removed his shirt. The grim quickly turned away and coughed to try and hide the embarrassment. That really must've given the wrong idea to Elias and anyone around them. Thankfully, it was only Chise and Silky in the room besides the two of them.

"You're just built like a human," Ruth admitted. "I...expected something else, to be honest with you. Something that hinted more to your species."

Elias hummed. "My strength resided in this facade quite well. Although I'm sure I'd look much different if I were an actual human."

Ruth snorted and pattered his way to Chise. She had been watching the two of them stare at each other for what felt like an ages. When she saw her familiar come, the redhead giggled and pet the top of his coat. Ruth leaned into her touch and closed his eyes momentarily to enjoy the soft feeling of her hand.

"Staring at Elias' abs, huh?" She asked amusingly.

Ruth gave her a glare and motioned her hand off of him right away. He replied, "No, I was just...intrigued as to why he doesn't look different. Is that so bad?"

"No," She shook her head. "What _is_ bad is that you're not ready. Why aren't you wearing your bathing suit?"

The dog groaned. Today, for one reason or another, they were visiting the beach. The idea, of course, came from Chise one day when Elias asked her if she'd be interested in a vacation. She admitted to him, at the time, that she had a new bathing suit she purchased from the store that still needed to be used. She neglected to tell them that she also bought Elias and Ruth pairs of trunks while "she was at it". He had no clue what the aforementioned bathing suit looked like, but he really didn't want to wear it.

Chise could tell from the look on his face that he wasn't too keen on the idea. She gave him a low frown and started to give him her green puppy eyes. Ruth took a step back and shook his head furiously.

"No," He said. "You're not getting me into a bathing suit, Chise."

The redhead huffed. She leaned down to scavenge through a plastic bag until she found what she was looking for. She held a pair of brand new trunks in her hand and slowly unfolded it so it came into Ruth's view. The design of it was dark gray with a red trim. The grim saw patterns of gray skulls mixed into the design and gave Chise a rather dull look.

"Trying to fit me as a goth?" He asked.

She sighed. "It was all I could find in your size, Ruth. Pleeeeaaaassee can you wear it? It cost me 12 bucks! And I know for a fact that you like the color black."

"Doesn't mean I'm going to wear it," He replied.

Chise gave her familiar a challenging look and he gladly returned it. The redhead soon stood up from her seat and started to walk over to the Silky, whom had been standing next to the door awaiting instructions. She leaned up to whisper something in the brownie's ear. Ruth watched the two of them intently. His red eyes widened when he saw Chise slip the pair of trunks into Silky's hand and smile at him devilishly.

Before he could react, Silky was already walking towards him with the pair of trunks in her hand. The grim took a step back but was quickly grabbed by her. This caused him to morph back into his human facade out of surprise. He was about to fight against her grip until he saw the death glare given to him by those soft, pink eyes. The look made him freeze and gulp out of fear.

For the second time he's ever heard her speak, Silky lowly said, "Please, put these on."

Ruth, hesitatingly at first, grabbed the pair of trunks from her hand. The brownie's death glare diminished and was immediately replaced by a look of content. She gave him a smile and leaned up to quickly kiss him on the cheek. She retreated back to her spot next to the door and folded her hands to continue waiting. Ruth's eyes widened as he rubbed the spot on his cheek quietly.

" _Now_ are you going to put them on?" Chise asked. Her arms were crossed and she looked rather smug about what happened.

Ruth rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I'll be ready in about 5 minutes. Tell Ainsworth not to leave me behind this time."

With that, Chise's familiar disappeared from view to get ready for the trip. The redhead hummed happily as she skipped over to her fiancé across the room. Elias was currently packing whatever else they needed into another plastic bag. When he saw his apprentice come toward him, he turned his skull and looked down at her rather happily. She looked abnormally lively and energetic.

"Excited?" He asked. Chise nodded enthusiastically.

"Yup! It's been awhile since we were in public." She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear shyly. "And it'll be the first time Silky's coming with us, too..."

Elias chuckled. "Yes, she once hinted to me that she'd like to visit the beach. Of course, I really hadn't the reason to go. I didn't have you at that time, Chise."

She blushed. "Really?"

"Yes. I can happily say that I look forward to this trip as well. The pair of trunks you got me look quite nice, Chise."

He curved his pupils and patted the top of her head. He slipped the last bottle of sunscreen into the bag before tying its handles and setting it to the side. Chise was too busy eying him while he did so. She had to admit, his body _was_ pretty irresistible. They bathed together before, and she remembered being mesmerized by his stomach when she first saw it. Now, she was How lucky was she to end up being engaged to a man with a _6 pack_?

Chise suddenly coughed, ridding of these thoughts right away. Elias shrugged on his robe over his frame and motioned for Chise to start heading to the door. The readhead pivoted around and started walking over to Silky. They happened to reach the door just as Ruth did. He didn't look much different in his trucks, though his familiar could happily admit that she has never seen legs so pale.

She opened her mouth to comment until Ruth cut her off. "-Come on, let's go. I want to dig into those sandwiches as soon as possible."

Chise rolled her eyes and followed them down the stairs. "Is that really all you're coming for, Ruth?"

"Yes."

* * *

Chise Hatori was the one to teleport them to the beach. She insisted on using her spell instead of Elias because she felt rather proud that her magic was getting better. He, of course, seemed a little hesitant on letting her transport 4 people at once - but let his apprentice do it, anyway. They came back in one piece just one block from the beach, much to their relief. Chise could safely say that she has never been so proud of herself before.

The redhead leaned on her cane and sighed happily. "Guess this deserves some ice cream afterward, huh, Elias?"

The magus patted her shoulder. "But of course. Congratulations, Chise. I knew you were capable of doing it."

The teenager couldn't help but suddenly lunge towards Elias and wrap her arms around him. It truly was a precious moment to her - normally, she transported only herself! And occasionally Ruth. Elias hugged her back and rubbed his thumb on her neck very lightly. Silky and Ruth decided to dismiss themselves from them and start walking their way to the beach.

Chise suddenly realized that they were gone. She took a hold of Elias' gloved hand and started leading him in their direction. They found that Silky had stopped near one of the newspaper machines to buy a copy and saw Ruth eying a candy shop that sat just before the beach. More importantly, the sight of a sandy beach was only a few feet away, and Chise was ecstatic on reaching it.

As soon as Silky had her copy, the redhead pulled Ruth from the shop and followed them down their way to the beach. She had to listen to her familiar protest the whole way until they were there. The place was absolutely packed. They only had the great weather and generous sun to thank for that.

Chise sighed. "Man, I thought it'd have cleared up by now."

"Then let's find the least crowded spot." Ruth scanned the beach. "I think there's a secluded area to the right, over there."

Elias, whom was now in his human glamour, rubbed his chin. "Is it because humans are modest with swimming?"

The redhead frowned. "No, it's just more enjoyable when there's not a lot of people with you. And, erm...Ruth's kinda' the introvert."

"Ah."

Chise neglected to tell him that it was also because she wanted to see him back in his usual form. The four of them headed to the least crowded spot on the beach and started to set up in a shady spot. That meant unloading the towels, sunscreen, umbrellas, ice chest, hats, sunglasses...As soon as they got that out of the way, the four of them went to applying sunscreen on themselves.

"Is it really necessary for you to have some on?" Ruth abruptly asked when he saw Elias reach for the bottle.

"No, not really." He grabbed it. "I was just going to offer to do your back, Chise."

The redhead smiled and nodded. "Of course, Elias. Just let me..."

She peeled off her over-shirt, revealing the bikini she'd been wearing underneath the whole time. It was a basic shade of red that had small details of flowers on the breast fabric and the G-String below. She tied her auburn-colored hair up earlier into a small pony tail so it didn't cover her back. She also had a pair of sunglasses resting on the top of her head that had an orange frame over them.

Elias froze for a second, relishing in the rare view of Chise wearing a bikini. A smile grew on his lips as he generously went to lathering her back with the sunscreen. He did his best making sure it covered it and handed her the bottle so she could finish the job. Chise thanked him as she went to covering her face, and Elias had no other choice but to sit there and watch her.

Silky folded out a chair and sat down on it, opening up the newspaper she got earlier and immediately began reading. She had the umbrella adjusted to cover the sun directly, but still left some light so she could read the paper. Beside her was the ice chest, followed by some towels she laid onto the sand for the others to rest on. Chise looked at the sight with admiration.

"Seems like she had all this planned out," The teen observed.

Elias followed her gaze and nodded. "Seems so."

Silky looked up from the newspaper and found the three of them staring at her. She gave them a modest smile and gently lifted the paper down. She waved her hand to them and motioned over to the ocean. Chise got the message and suddenly stood, helping Ruth up and giving Elias the same message. The magus shrugged off his robe and stood there wearing nothing but the trunks.

It was the same sight as before, just with regular skin color. Chise grabbed his hand and started leading Elias down to the shoreline. Ruth followed after them slowly and used one of his hands to block the sun from his eyes. He found that the redhead was already down by the water now, gently setting a foot in and shivering at its temperature. Elias was standing beside her and watching his apprentice with amusement.

"Huh," Ruth commented to himself. "I've never seen him smile that genuinely..."

The redhead finally gathered up the courage to go down into the water until it came to her waistline. She let out an "ooh!" before settling into the water. She turned around and motioned for Elias to follow. He hesitated before setting a leg in and slowly coming down until he stood next to her. The water was barely touching his knees at this level.

Chise placed a finger to her chin. "Hmmmm..."

Elias gave her an inquisitive look. "Yes?" He asked.

"I'm just thinking of what we could do _first_ ," She replied.

She leaned down to let the water touch her shoulders and shivered again, except this time with delight. She quickly dunked her head underneath the water and quickly surfaced again. She rubbed the water from her eyes and gave an expectant look to her fiance. He looked between her and the water for a moment until he leaned down as well and dipped an arm in. Unlike her, the temperature didn't affect him.

"Is this what you wanted?" He asked.

"I kind of wanted you to dunk your head in like I did," She admitted.

"I'd be touching the sand more if I did that, and it isn't a pleasant feeling right now." Elias stood up straight. "Besides, the water feels fine as it is right here."

Chise took his words into consideration. She walked further into the water until it was now at her neck level. She had to hop on one foot so she was still above the surface and pivoted so she saw Elias. He came down with her, and this time the water was at his chest. She couldn't help but notice the way his blonde hair bounced when he walked...

"Hey, Elias." She grinned.

"Yes?"

The redhead took a handful worth of water and threw it at his face. It splashed him immediately and sent beads of it into his hair. Those two bangs of his now fell, which confirmed Chise's theory if they had been gelled or were just natural. She giggled and did it again, which earned a scoff from Elias. He took a handful of water and threw it back at her in return. Instead of being aggravated, the teenager just smiled and laughed.

She splashed him again and again, and Elias decided to play her charade and do it back at her every time. Soon enough their faces were drenched. The magus finally dunked his head underneath the water and smoothed down the bangs to the side. Chise watched quietly as he wiped the excess water from his blue eyes.

"How long can you hold your breath?" She suddenly asked.

"30 minutes," He replied.

She gave him a look of disbelief. "Really!?"

"Yes."

"That's a Guinness World Record!"

"Figures," He stepped further into the water. "I have no use for human frivolities such as that. I'm sure I wouldn't qualify, anyway."

"Well, I was going to ask you if you wanted to see who can do it longer," Chise bit her lip. "But I don't want to wait 30 minutes when you can beat me with just 3..."

"Then how about we do something else?" Elias suggested. "Are there any games humans play involving water?"

"In here?" She scrunched up her nose. "I can't really think of any past children's toys...sometimes they throw around a beach ball, but you can do that on land, too."

She rubbed her chin and suddenly snapped her fingers. "What about Marco Polo?"

"Marco Polo?" He asked. "Who's that?"

Chise giggled. "No, it's a game. Like...if I'm 'It', I let you get as far from me as possible while I look for you with my eyes closed. When I say 'Marco', you have to reply 'Polo', so you can help me find you!"

"What's the point of saying 'Polo' if you're supposed to find me blindly?" Elias asked.

"It'll take less than holding our breath," She replied. The magus took the idea into consideration and soon nodded. Chise smiled and closed her eyes, preparing for the game they were about to play. She heard Elias move around but things went completely silent after that.

"Okay," She directed. "You can move."

She didn't hear anything. Either he was underwater or Elias refused to move. She decided to play it by ear and suddenly started feeling around. She had her arms outstretched to try and feel for Elias. After trying this for a full minute, Chise got aggravated for failing to find her fiance.

"Marco," She called.

"Polo," He replied.

Apparently, she wasn't anywhere _near_ where Elias had been. His voice came from afar, so Chise turned around on her heel and started to swim towards the direction. She heard Elias move around her and quickly tried to touch him. She'd feel his presence one moment and he'd be gone the next. The redhead frowned.

"Marco!" She called again.

"Polo," He replied again. His voice was right next to her, so Chise turned around and placed a firm hand on his chest. She blinked and opened her eyes, surprised to find that her hand had perfectly landed on his 6 pack.

Elias gave her a sheepish grin. "I let you have that one, Chise."

The redhead blushed and shyly removed her hand from his torso. She only was caught by surprise because the feel of it was...wonderfully hard. (Take that out of context and I will kill you.) Elias didn't notice this as he suddenly took her hand in his and started squeezing it with a smile. She squeezed back and shyly giggled.

Finding that she was no longer talking, Elias decided to let go and start swimming around her. Truthfully, he rather enjoyed the feeling of water. He normally preferred cold showers over hot ones, so the ocean was quite the relaxation for him. Chise smiled and decided to swim along with him, too. The two of them enjoyed feeling of brushing past one another and peeking at the other underwater.

At one point, Chise had completely lost sight of Elias when he went underwater. She looked around to try and look for him until he suddenly surfaced beneath her. The redhead let out a noise in surprise as she was suddenly grabbed by the legs and placed around Elias' neck. Instead of hanging onto his skull like she normally did, Chise grabbed onto the soft feeling of blonde hair.

She smiled, realizing the position they were in. He was giving her a piggyback ride! How cute. Elias spun the two of them around until she was face-to-face with Silky and Ruth from far. Her familiar apparently had ditched the two of them, as she saw him hanging by the brownie with sandwiches stuffed in his face.

"What a party pooper," The redhead waved her hand at him. "He didn't even join us!"

"Perhaps he didn't want to be a 'third wheel'?" Elias asked. Chise looked down at her fiance and poke him playfully.

"Yeah, maybe."

The magus shot down into the water so Chise was dunked completely. He quickly resurfaced and felt drips of water come onto his body from hers. She rubbed the water from her eyes as she looked down at him and crossed her legs. The grin on her face told Elias all he needed to know. The magus continued to dip her and playfully carry her around in the water.

For how long, he wasn't quite sure.

* * *

"They sure are cute, huh?"

Ruth munched on a piece of baby carrot as he observed the two in the water from afar. They looked completely isolated from the rest of the people at the beach. They looked just like any couple, really. The guy spinning the girl around, giving her piggy back rides, the girlfriend splashing her boyfriend to mess with him...It was a sight Ruth wasn't sure if he'd ever get tired of.

Judging by Chise's thoughts, she was happy. And that's all that he wanted, really. His presence probably would have just resulted in getting a face-full of water, anyway. He decided on settling for lunch until the two of them were done, and then afterwards they can start playing a game of beach ball and maybe teach Elias how to make a sandcastle.

Silky suddenly set her newspaper to the side and watched the two of them herself. A smile grew on her lips and she politely clasped her hands down at her waist. Ruth hadn't noticed that she wasn't wearing her usual dress until now. She was actually wearing thinner clothes that still covered her generously. She wore her hat, but it was tied looser than it usually was.

"Say, you knew Elias the longest..." Ruth dipped his carrot into some ranch. Silky turned to him and nodded, intrigued for the next question.

"So, would you say that...What's going on _out there_ ," He motioned to Elias and Chise. "Would have been better than you and Elias going to the beach years ago?"

Silly nodded with no hesitation. Ruth opened his mouth to ask why, but then remembered she spoke very exclusively. He decided to finish munching on his lunch instead. He didn't know what begged the question, but he could honestly say that he was curious. He recalled getting something from Chise's thoughts earlier about Silky wanting to go to the beach with Elias before she came along.

"He's happier now," She suddenly spoke. Ruth's eyes widened as he turned to her, a little caught off guard.

"Happier?" He repeated. Silky nodded and pointed back over to them. Ruth turned his head and noticed that he looked right as Elias and Chise kissed just above the water.

"Chise is, too." The grim smiled. "If I could tell you what's going through her mind right now, it'd probably take ages."

Silky only nodded, and the two of them continued to sit there and watch the couple from afar. Truly, this beach day was really necessary. It was a good thing Chise convinced everyone to leave the house. Silky seemed content with being outside in public for once, and Ruth definitely wasn't complaining. And he knew for a fact that Elias and Chise were ecstatic about it, too.

He glanced back at his sandwich and took it in his hands. He opened his mouth and took a generous bite of its contents. He closed his eyes and let out a long "mmmm". What he'd do for another perfect day like this...


	14. Curves

"Elias, you're hogging the blankets!"

Yet another typical night between Pilum Murialis and the fae's Robin. The two of them were currently encircled in generous layers of blankets atop of their king-sized bed. The ancient magus aid on the left side and was indulging himself with 3 different blankets on his side, purposely tugged from the right and off of his fiancee. The redhead was trying her best to pull them from underneath his figure.

"C'mon!" She tugged harder. "It's going to be cold tonight!"

Chise Hatori was wearing a grin. She visibly enjoyed playing with him like this. Even though he was centuries old, Elias really showed his childish side during some nights. He'd tap his fingers on her back, purposely hog most of the space on the bed, or he would sometimes pull the blankets off of her small figure, like he had done right now. She didn't really mind it. She was actually getting the urge to play with him, too.

Something flashes through the magus' orbs for a moment, and he suddenly gets off of the blankets. She reached for them and clutched onto the end of the top layer. She was about to pull it over her figure until she felt two arms wrap around her stomach and suddenly motion her on top of the magus beside her. His strong grip on her prevented the redhead from escaping.

Despite being in the clutches of someone who could grow 18 feet high, Chise giggled. She found what he did to be childish, but it was the _good_ kind. She tried to pry his arms off of her but came to no avail. She leaned her head back on the side of his skull and turned so she was able to see him.

"What are you doing _now_?" She asked.

"You said it's going to be cold," He shrugged. "And you've told me before that I'm warm. I'm only assuming that you wanted me to hold you."

"I was trying to get to the blankets," Chise grabbed at them again. "I was only guilt tripping you so I could get them."

Elias used one of his arms to throw them aside. He playfully asked, "Would you rather have me or the blankets?"

The redhead eyed him amusingly, and held a thoughtful finger to her chin to seriously contemplate it. She felt him tense for a moment, as if he was thinking that she was going to take the question literally. She soon laughed as she poked the end of Elias' jaw with a smile.

" _You_ , of course." She relaxed in his grasp. "The blankets would be a nice addition, though."

Elias moved his skull over when the redhead suddenly laid it on his shoulder. She closed her eyes with a smile and held the side of his head with her free hand. Her posture was completely relaxed by this point, and he squirmed only a little bit to get comfortable. The magus watched rather surprised. He hadn't expected her to actually situate herself to sleep on him!

He didn't want to complain, though, so the magus relaxed his grip and gently started to rub her stomach. He felt her t-shirt resting just below her chest, and went to pull it down until his arm trailed against the side of her body. He paused in what he was doing, as if he was surprised. He trailed his hand over her side again and felt what he had doubted before. He used his other arm to feel the left side of her body and hummed softly.

"You've got curves," He murmured.

Chise heard this and blinked her eyes open. She looked down and saw Elias trailing his hands over her hourglass figure. She hadn't even realized the change in her own body until now. The few years of living with him and being engaged to Elias made her completely overlook how much she had been developing. She gently laid her head back on his shoulder and smiled.

"Yeah," She replied. "I guess I do."

Elias rested one of his hands on her stomach, but the other kept trailing over the shape of her body. It eventually rested on her waist and soon felt the top portion of her thigh. Chise shivered at the contact momentarily, but soon rested into his warm grip. She turned to nuzzle his skull and closed her eyes again.

"I would have presumed that you'd know," Elias admitted. "It IS your own body."

"Femininity wasn't really my thing..." She bit her lip. "So it just passed me, I guess."

He gently squeezed her thigh, making the redhead jump in surprise. She turned and gave him a rather bashful look. The blush spreading on her cheeks was almost as red as her hair. Elias did it again, earning another jump and an even deepened blush. She placed a hand on the side of his skull to make him stop and look her in the eye.

Chise seemed unsure of what to say. "Elias, I..."

He squeezed again, and this time she didn't jump. She only squeezed her legs together and smiled shyly. She laid a kiss next to his eye socket and rested her cheek on his skull. He raised his hand to caress the side of her face as he looked straight in her beautiful, green eyes. He couldn't help it; this sudden realization of her made him...grateful.

"It means you're growing," He told her. "And in a good way. I'd much rather have you develop curves than your body deteriorating from excess magic."

She blinked, a little surprised. "Huh...I hadn't even thought of that..."

Elias looked down as he continued trailing his hand along her body. How the hips came into love handles, and how the slow formation of her chest complimented her frame. Her thin shirt only hugged her figure tighter, giving him quite the sight. He wasn't nearly as infatuated with her looks as he was with her kind yet innocent personality. She always had been a beautiful Robin; now she was just developing more to the part.

He used his arm to usher her closer to him. Chise flipped around so she was now laying on her stomach on top of him. She nuzzled her head into his shoulder and sighed contently. Elias placed one of his arms on her back and the other on her lower thigh. He held her close to his chest protectively. She completely relaxed in his grip and used one of her arms to wrap around him and squeezed.

The magus rubbed the end of his skull on her neck. Her back showed the hourglass even better. He rubbed under her shoulder blade with his thumb and slowly made his way down to her waist. Chise shivered when he came closer to her hips. He leaned on her assuredly and gave a quick squeeze. She held onto him tighter as his hand and traveled down her thigh, softly rubbing the skin while he did so.

Ignoring the evocative thoughts in the back of his head, Elias felt relieved. If she had been bought by anyone else back at that fateful auction, she wouldn't have even come this far. She would've still been deprived of food, thin to the bone, and would've possibly died before she even reached adulthood. Feeling her curves was just so refreshing for him...refreshing to know that she was still the beautiful Robin Chise was born as.

"It makes you more angelic..." He runs his hand through her hair. "To see you becoming more of a woman, that is."

The redhead doesn't reply, which urges Elias to check on her. Her eyes are closed and her breathing is now steady. Her head is rested in the crook of his neck and one of her arms are wrapped around his frame. He pressed his skull against her head gently, signalling as yet another kiss. He soon turned his head so it rested comfortably on the pillow, and resumed feeling the curves that his fiancee's body had to offer.

He had been sleeping with an angel this whole time, yet he only knew now.


	15. Visitors

They were expecting, not one, but two visitors today.

It wasn't uncommon for Elias to keep quiet about his businesses with the visitors that came every now and then. Usually, he'd only give a brief description of their business to Chise and maybe slip a reason to her on why they were coming. He almost never gave out their names or identities, so the redhead was very unfamiliar with them. She'd try and ask the Silky who they were and why Elias didn't want to tell her, but all she'd get is a silent nod and a dismissive wave of the hand.

Today was no different. The magus informed her that there were two people coming today, both at once, and that he had some business to attend with them. He was very casual this time on letting her know rather than being so informative like he was in the past. That was probably one of the many upsides to being openly engaged with him now. He was closer to her, though Chise still felt a little distant when it came to matters like this.

After he finished letting her know about their soon arrival, the redhead managed to stop him just before he left her room. She had grabbed the end of his sleeve and motioned him back to her, giving her teacher a curious yet determined look.

"What's the business for, Elias?" She asked hopefully. "I don't think you've told me."

The magus paused and lightly scratched the side of his skull in thought. It looked like he was debating on telling her. "Just some involvement with the church, is all."

"Oh." Her shoulders slumped. She let go of his sleeve and went back to her desk to continue studying. Her posture was a lot less attentive and she was hunched over in her chair. Elias watched her through the corner of his eye socket and suddenly came behind her. He leaned down and slowly nuzzled the side of her cheek with his skull, which she knew symbolized as a kiss.

"It's nothing to fret over," He assured her. "It should be a very quick meeting, anyway."

Chise tapped the end of her pencil against her chin. Somehow, she wasn't convinced. "Yeah, okay, Elias."

He was oblivious to her sudden distant behavior and didn't question it again. He bid his leave through her door, leaving his apprentice alone with her thoughts. The usual smile on her face dropped to a low frown, and she set down her pencil to contemplate the situation quietly. The silence that ensued didn't help calm her one bit. It was like there was something empty inside her chest and had been slowly growing this whole time.

* * *

Chise tried her best to indulge her thoughts into studying magic for the rest of the day. The troubling feeling gnawing at her insides hadn't left her no matter how hard she tried to forget about it. Eventually, her shifty body language and sudden sessions of work alarmed her familiar. He knew that she was feeling troubled, so it entitled him to try and help her. Ruth sauntered over to the redhead while she had her nose shoved in a book and pressed a paw against her knee.

"Are you feeling alright?" He asked. The redhead looked up from the literature and cringed.

"Is it that obvious?" She asked. Her familiar jumped on the bed and sat beside her, turning his head so she could look her in the eyes. He nodded in confirmation.

" _That_ , and we ARE connected." He replied. "Is the business with Ainsworth bothering you? I felt the shift come after he told you about his meeting today."

Chise suddenly felt embarrassed on how he summarized that. "-Yeah, I am. It just feels like he's still distance with me even after all this time we've spent together..."

Ruth hummed. "Sounds like something you should tell him. He always listens to you, doesn't he? It shouldn't be any different this time."

The redhead shut her book and nodded, a smile growing on her lips. "Yeah, he does. I guess I should bring it up to him before I forget. Thanks, Ruth."

She leaned down and gently kissed the top of the dog's head. She set the book down on her nightstand and quickly exited the room, leaving Ruth to sit there in silence. He watched her figure disappear out of sight and gently huffed. He laid his head on the blankets and suddenly started to sniff the air furiously. He sensed a new presence, now...or was it two?

Before Chise was even down the stairs, she could hear Elias' voice projecting around the house. His voice sounded a lot more firm than it did when he spoke to her earlier. The redhead quietly made her way down the last few steps of the stairs and peeked behind the wall. She found the magus sitting in his usual chair, with his cloth placed over his skull to hide his direct identity. She found the Silky walking around the room with a gray tray placed in her hands. She bowed in front of someone and offered them a cup of tea, though Chise couldn't quite see who.

The teenager leaned forward and titled her head. As soon as the brownie stepped away from the stranger, Chise was able to finally see who they were. In the chair across from Elias sat a human man. He looked a lot like Seth back at that fateful auction, except this man was completely covered in black. The only part of his attire that wasn't was the brown robe that encircled his figure. His hair was long and messy, though Chise couldn't quite make out the color of his eyes from here.

Silky offered someone else a cup, who gratefully took it and started sipping its contents. Chise peeked over and widened her eyes at the sight. It was an older teenage boy around her age. He had bright blonde hair and appeared quite cleaner than the man in the chair. He was wearing a brown trench coat that covered his figure down to his ankles. Why he'd be wearing something like in warm weather, she didn't quite want to know.

Her fingers tread lightly over the surface of her necklace. She quickly debated using it to check them, but went against her judgement. The man in the chair must have noticed her because his eyes traveled over in her direction. Chise froze and quickly tried to conceal herself behind the wall. She must have been too late because she heard an unfamiliar voice call out soon after.

"Ah, there she is right now! Your apprentice, Ainsworth?"

The redhead peeked back through the corner and found everyone's eyes on her. Chise nervously revealed herself out from the darkness and stepped into the room. Silky gently set the tray down on the table and passed by her, giving the teenager a pat on her shoulder. The redhead blinked in confusion before she turned back to the three men. The two visitors' eyes were locked on her. Elias turned away and motioned to them with his gloved hand.

"Yes, she is. Chise, this is Jaakobah and his apprentice, Vihaan. They are close volunteers with the Church."

Jaakobah leaned out from his seat and offered his hand to her. When she shook it, he replied, "Pleasure to meet you. I've heard quite a bit about you from Simon."

"Really?" She asked curiously. "What did he say?"

"The usual when referring to close friends. How intelligent and sweet you are. I'm sure it's all true, but the Church is known to glorify typically everything."

Chise blinked, trying to register his words correctly. She went over to Vihaan and offered her hand out to him. Instead of giving it a firm shake like his teacher did, Vihaan actually held her hand in his own and laid a kiss on the top of it like a traditional gentleman. The redhead blinked in surprise and stared at him as he rose.

"It's great to finally meet another apprentice," He smiled at her. "For awhile, I was starting to think there weren't any around."

She gave him a polite smile and quickly withdrew her hand. His touch was warm, but it felt a bit unwelcoming, in a way. She opened her mouth to reply to him until they heard some footsteps come into the room. Chise turned around on her boot's heel and found Ruth pattering into the room in his dog form. He glared at the two visitors and went forward to sniff their shoes unmannerly.

"Ah, the maid didn't mention any pets." Jaakobah pointed at him. "Is he friendly?"

Ruth gave the two of them a final look before morphing back into his human form. He stood beside Chise and placed one leg in front of her protectively. He glared in the direction of Vihaan specifically, though his eyes kept glancing back at Jaakobah.

"Where are you from?" He asked.

The two men blinked in surprise and exchanged glances. His sudden question must've taken them aback, because Jaakobah's mouth kept opening but nothing would come about. Vihaan looked a little uncomfortable answering it himself. Elias eventually placed a gloved hand on his skull and caught Ruth's attention.

"They're extensive travelers that offer their services to local churches. They're interested in matters with our own that requires some...attention to me, if you will."

"Such an ancient magus is a wonder to Master's interest in magic," Vihaan suddenly explained. "We merely need more permission involving him and your Church."

Chise was still a little lost, but went to shoo Ruth away, anyway. He gave her a look of betrayal when she motioned for him to go back upstairs. She gave him a patient look that often meant she'd explain everything to him later. Her familiar hesitated before disappearing from the room and heading back upstairs. As soon as he was out of sight, Jaakobah visibly sighed in relief.

"Must us foreigners always get interrogated?" He exaggerated. "We come to houses as guests and nothing more, yet we still face matters like these."

Chise stepped forward and gave him an apologetic bow. She said, "Sorry, Ruth can sometimes get worked up like that. Is there anything I can get for you?"

Jaakobah glanced between Chise and Elias, and rested his head in his hand. His face turned into one that held amusement. "Well, your teacher and I were discussing the topic of you before you came. I was wondering if you'd be interested in seeing what future progress awaits you as a magus?"

The redhead blinked, twiddling with her fingers unconsciously. She couldn't deny that the topic interested her. "-I suppose so," She finally answered. "Only if Elias approves of it, though."

She turned over at him and gave him a patient smile. Elias turned back to her and suddenly looked over in Vihaan's direction. There was clearly some hesitation going on, and he contemplated the idea for a bit too long. He slowly turned back to Jaakobah and motioned forward with his gloved hand.

"The idea would not hurt," He said. "As long as it's within the period of your visit, then I'll allow it."

"Fantastic." His grin unsettled Chise. "Vihaan, go outside with Elias' apprentice and perform a few...informative lessons for her. That'll be today's supplementary."

Vihaan bowed lowly. "Of course, Master. If you will, Chise..."

The teenager motioned his head over to the front door. The redhead looked back at Elias and found that he had his attention focused on Jaakobah instead. She still wanted to talk to him about what bothered her...but she guess she couldn't, now. She sighed discreetly as she started to follow behind Vihaan, quietly closing the door behind them.

* * *

Vihaan was leading her a little bit outside of their Garden. He was clearly looking for an isolated space for the two of them. He moved smoothly and each step he made was certain. Chise felt a little uneasy around him but tried to keep her best judgement at hand. If he was a fellow apprentice, then he must relate to some of her troubles, too? He seemed rather experienced, but that's probably because he respects Jaakobah so much.

While he continued leading them, Chise couldn't help but ask. "Why do you call your teacher 'Master'?"

He looked back at her and passed a smile. She couldn't help but notice the strong jawline of his. "It's traditional to do so, is all. You shouldn't really be familiar with your instructor."

"Huh." The redhead furrowed her eyebrows. "That's odd..."

"It's not like you're close with Ainsworth." Vihaan turned away from her. "I wouldn't want to befriend my Master - we don't have a lot of the same interests."

Chise was about to correct him until he suddenly stopped. He turned around to face Chise and took a good look at their surroundings. They weren't too far from the house - just a peek out of the dining room's window would reveal them immediately. A sense of comfort comes to the redhead as she turns back to Vihaan. He has his eyes closed and looks like he's trying to concentrate something in his head.

Suddenly, she feels a spark go through her body. Something that makes her feel a lot more...awake and energetic. Her green eyes shine for a moment before she looks back at him. Vihaan has a coy smile and tilted his head to look at her. Something about his posture changed.

"There," He said. "Now things will be a lot more quiet."

"Did you cast a spell?" She asked. "If you did, that was really quick."

She looked around and noticed that the sounds of nature slowly diminished. The chirps of the birds came to a low murmur, and the wind around them slowed as well. Time itself had not changed; just the volume of anything around them. Chise let out an impressed whistle and glanced back at Vihaan. He looked rather proud of himself for completing it so naturally.

"I know Master wanted me to teach you what I know," He shrugged. "But I figure that'll be a waste of time. Instead, I decided to have some alone time with you."

Chise narrowed her eyes. Alone time? What exactly did that mean? She realized that she couldn't hear Ruth's voice in her head anymore. Either that or he wasn't talking. It didn't seem like a big deal, so the redhead shrugged it off. It must not be a bad thing...they were still here. And close to the house as well.

"Like apprentice-to-apprentice?" She asked hopefully. Vihaan rubbed the end of his chin in thought.

"Yeah, sure. Come, let's have a seat right here."

He patted a random spot on the grass that happened to be next to a small pond. Chise found no harm in sitting next to him, so she walked over and plopped down beside the teenager. The sound of the water splashing was barely audible. The redhead gently dipped a finger in to see if it'd make any noise. It didn't.

"How old are you?" He suddenly asked. Chise turned to him and blinked confusedly.

"17, but my Birthday is technically a month from now." She replied. "What about you?"

"18." Vihaan replied, then laughed. "I wasn't expecting to find someone here my age, honestly. A lot of adults tend to be out here."

An awkward pause of silence ensued after. The two of them sat there rather uncomfortably now, both of them trying to think of something to break the ice with. Chise looked over at him and tried to see what he was wearing underneath that trench coat. When he caught her stare, she quickly turned away and nervously tugged the end of her sleeves.

"Are you a traditional type of person?" She asked. "No one really kisses girls on the hand when you greet them anymore."

He looked at her in the corner of his eye. "I was raised with those customs, is all. You always take a beautiful woman's hand in yours and kiss it to show your admiration."

Chise realized what he was saying and blushed. She really didn't look that beautiful, did she? Granted, Elias told her so, but he hasn't seen much of humans for awhile...This guy was her age, so he'd know who exactly looked good and who didn't. She didn't quite know what to reply with, so the redhead sat there with a dumb smile.

"I honestly didn't expect someone so young working with someone so old," Vihaan commented. "How long have you been learning from Ainsworth?"

"Elias bought me from an auction house in the black market," Chise replied a little too casually. "It's been awhile now. He bought me when I was 16."

He gave her a look. "Master and I have an age gap, but not as big as yours and his. Does it..really not bother you?"

She shook her head. "No, not really. After all the people I've met coming here...his age really hasn't affected me at all. There are some other beings in the world older than him."

Chise unconsciously smiled, suddenly letting her thoughts wander back to Elias. She wished she had brought the matter up to him. She should probably do that after her and Vihaan were done with...well, whatever they were doing. Hopefully his meeting with Jaakobah shouldn't take much longer. Vihaan was only staying here as long as his teacher was, right?

"So, how far are you into learning magic?" She asked. "I crafted myself a cane, and-"

"-I'd rather not talk about that." He replied abruptly. "I want to know more about you."

"About...me?" The redhead repeated. "Well, you already know the basics. I-"

"What are you _into_?" He clarified. "I don't study all the time. I hope you're not one of those girls who does. Or are you?"

She shook her head rather defensively. "No! I...I like to garden, and sometimes I enjoy reading."

Vihaan gave her a bored look, but soon shrugged it off. "I like to play the violin and practice the flute myself. I find music to be a good break from magic. It's alluring in its own way, of course...Kinda' like you."

Chise turned to him sharply. For some reason, what he said was really getting her heart beat going. Why was he complimenting her so suddenly? She already had been taken aback by his comment about her being beautiful. Alluring was a...far heavier compliment. If Chise didn't know any better, she'd call it flirtatious.

"Um..." She tried the blush spreading on her cheeks. "Thank you? But I'm really-"

"I know what you're going to say. 'Not that great' or 'not that pretty', but it's wrong. You're actually really cute, and I've seen enough of humans and...non-humans to know THAT."

Vihaan's eyes were now traveling over her figure. They had a look of interest, and the smile forming on his lips wasn't helping the case. Chise immediately crossed her legs to hide what was underneath her skirt. She didn't exactly understand why he was looking at her like that...she had a t-shirt and a vest on! There wasn't much to see.

She gave him a stern look. "I've never met someone so unpredictable. You seemed a lot more...reserved in front of Jaakobah."

"Master says to not show much interest in front of company. You take whoever you see beautiful to the side, and let them know personally. To let them know that you admire them."

Vihaan suddenly started inching closer to her. Chise's eyes widened and she scooted back quickly. He reached for her hand and grabbed it roughly. The redhead tried to fight against his grip but found that he was stronger than he looked. His thin frame didn't give others such impression.

"Let go!" She exclaimed, swatting at his hand.

"In the world, you truly aren't handed _anything._ " He said, grinning maliciously. "You either take what you want, or you let it pass you. After seeing you, Chise...I know who I want, now."

Chise gasped as he suddenly pulled her closer to him. He placed a firm hand on her back so she couldn't escape, and pulled her closer with his hand. She was now placed against his chest. The redhead tried to kick him in the groin, but found that the trench coat he was wearing prevented her from even reaching close to it.

"I thought you worked with the church!" Chise squeaked. Vihaan laughed in response.

" _Please._ They aren't aware of the sins their own attendees commit. They cry forgiveness and prayer, but it doesn't stop anyone. Not even people like me."

He suddenly shoved her onto the ground. The redhead landed on her back and was momentarily free. She scrambled to get up but was suddenly pressed back down onto the grass. Vihaan was now on top of her. His arms and legs were pinned down beside her, which completely eliminated her chances of escaping. Chise gasped when his face suddenly came in front of hers.

"It's all a gimmick," He rubbed the side of her face with his hand. "If you come with me now, Chise, then we can become one. I can help you realize your own sins, and we can commit them together."

 **"Chise!"**

A deep voice suddenly sounded in the house's direction. Chise couldn't quite make out whose it was. Vihaan suddenly climbed off of her and quickly grabbed back at her wrists. She cried out in pain as his grasp tightened. He pulled her back to him and stared her right in the eyes. His blue irises shot fear down in the teenager's stomach.

"Make your choice," He stated firmly. "I'm not going to give you another chance - either you come with me, or Jaakobah will take you."

Her eyes widened in fear. Before she could reply, something suddenly came into contact with the back of Vihaan's head. His grip on her loosened as he was suddenly sent to the ground. When his face came into contact with the grass, the volume around them went back to normal. Things were abnormally loud for a second and sent a ringing in both of Chise's ears.

She looked up and found Elias himself standing in front of them both. In his hand was his cane - which she presumed that he had used to hit Vihaan with. Chise didn't hesitate to run to him and hug him tightly. She didn't need to say anything because it was very clear that she was relieved to see him.

Vihaan rubbed the back of his head and turned around slowly. As soon as he saw Elias, he let out a rather loud gulp. The magus pointed to him with the end of his cane, and his orbs went completely red for a second or two.

" **Leave.** " He commanded.

"What?" The apprentice replied weakly.

"I have no use for miscreants like you," Elias said. "Challenge me and you'll end up like your 'Master' down there."

He motioned down at the bottom of the hill with his cane. Vihaan found Jaakobah down below - waving his hands frantically in the air for him to come down. His clothes were ruffled and there were a couple of scratches and blood seen on his face from this distance. Vihaan blinked and stared at the ground in confusion. He looked back up at Elias and decided to test his limits.

"I didn't know you and her...were..." He breathed.

The magus aimed his cane back at him, as to which Vihaan finally took his leave. He stumbled trying to get down the hill, but met with Jaakobah once he was at the bottom. The two of them immediately sprinted down the trail, only looking back once and heading into the direction of the forest.

As soon as the two were out of their sight, Elias discarded his cane. He placed a hand on Chise's back and looked down at her quietly. She was shaking a bit in his grip, still visibly affected by what had happened. He used both of his hands to usher her closer.

"That spell he cast was actually a cloak," The magus explained to her. "You two were removed from within sight - though at a cost of hearing."

"R-Really?" She swallowed hard. "Then how did you find us?"

"It takes a lot more than a cloak to hide you from me," He picked up her necklace and showed it to her. "I just got lucky."

Chise sighed in relief. She held onto him tighter as she said, "He wanted to...to have me come with him. Something about the sins I have yet to commit."

Elias rubbed his skull thoughtfully. "Yes, I actually found out about their plot before Jaakobah mentioned it. I...sensed something bad about that boy you were with."

The redhead bit her lip. "You were right to," She admitted. "He flirted with me and suddenly got on top of me. I had no idea what he was doing..."

She looked down at the ground and withdrew her hands from him. She suddenly noticed the bruises that formed at the ends of her wrists. Elias noticed it as well and gently grabbed her hand so it was into view. The magus studied the sight intently. He gently started to rub over them and looked at her for a reaction. Chise cringed and took a sharp breath of air when he let go.

"If anything like this happens again," He warned. "Don't hesitate to let others know that you're with me. It discourages them."

Chise nodded. She rubbed her wrists and tried to think of a bright side. After awhile, she looked up at the magus and grinned.

"...Otherwise, you'd get jealous?" She asked.

Elias thought about it for awhile, then nodded. "Yes, I believe I would."

The redhead grinned again as she suddenly went forward and wrapped her arms around him one last time. She relished his warm touch and squeezed his frame as hard as he could. Thank God he had been there at the right time - who knows what Vihaan would've done if he wasn't. And Elias really had no reason to be jealous; she was his and _only_ his.

As they walked back to their home, Chise silently decided on one thing. Maybe not knowing about his visitors was for the best...


	16. Out of Harm's Way

There was so much red.

Elias wasn't very fond of the color. To him, it always gave him a sense of confusion and anger. He knew very little of his past but only faintly remembered the color red. He'd grown accustomed to his beautiful robin and her cherry-colored hair. But one sight he would never grow used to was blood. Especially when it was on Chise. The bare sight of it made him horribly conflicted.

She was in his arms now, clutching at his black vest and slightly whimpering. She had gone through quite a tamper earlier that day. Another incident with the most evil of fae, he supposed. Her ring hadn't gone out like before that caused such a bloody mess, but her body suffered several wounds and scratches. Ones that never seemed to stop bleeding. Even holding her like this was leaving stains on his gloves...

"El...ias..." Chise muttered. He only held her closer to his chest as he rounded the corner of the house.

"It'll be alright," He assured. "Just lacerations that need attention."

Her delicate hand slowly came and was placed over his. Then she went limp in Elias' grasp. The magus panicked before she settled in his arms again. He sighed in relief rather loudly. He wouldn't know what to do with himself if she died at this moment. The last time he assumed so almost ended a catastrophe...Not to mention what his life would be like if she did.

Elias wasted no time as he hurried to the restroom and gently sat her on the rug. He prepared a bath and adjusted its temperature. Chise stirred from the floor and watched his back with tired, dull eyes. Ruth was still harboring her shadow so his physical form wouldn't hurt anymore than it did. She heard him in the back of her mind now, muttering some assuring things and all. She'd rather have her focus on Elias right now.

"I'm...sorry..." She said. The magus turned back to her in surprise.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. It couldn't be helped," Elias reached for a cloth underneath the sink. "If anything, I should apologize that I came too late. I should have been with you the moment it happened."

He dampened the cloth with warm water and placed it to the side. He discarded his stained gloves and went to cleaning his purple hands. The redhead watched him do so quietly and winced at the sudden sharp intakes of pain. She clutched at the side of her arm and gritted her teeth. Elias noticed this and reached forward. He grabbed the side of her shirt and ushered it down, which made Chise cringe.

"Ow..." She breathed. He tried to pull it down but felt her bring it back up in response.

"Chise," He said. "I need you to remove your clothes. You need warm water for only a bit, then you can get dressed again."

"I..." She averted his gaze. "I'm still...not used..."

"I've seen you bare the day I bought you from the auction," Elias scooted closer to her. "Please, let me help you."

She could hear Ruth chastising her in her head. She eventually gave up and let the magus fully remove her attire. He seemed more careful this time, but still went quick to remove them so they invoked less pain. Her shirt was removed first, which revealed all of the cuts and damages she had underneath. Then came her shorts, socks, and...her underwear...and other things that made her question her dignity...

As soon as they were off, Elias grabbed her carefully and gently set her in the bath. She shivered at the temperature change before she settled in. She couldn't deny that it stung, but it certainly calmed her a lot more. Chise slowly closed her eyes and ravished the serenity of the bath. Elias watched her relax her muscles as his orbs scanned the water. The blood seemed to be spreading, but not nearly as bad as he assumed.

There was still a lot of red.

"I feel awful for letting that happen..." The teenager admitted. "I'm trying to be stronger, but there are so many things out there bigger than me..."

"You musn't feel threatened by them." The magus leaned on the edge of the tub. "You can handle yourself well, Chise. It isn't a bad thing to require assistance from someone else."

The redhead smiled at his comforting words, but fell silent again. She really didn't know what to say. Something like this has happened before, but she didn't like appearing so weak in front of Elias. It made her feel embarrassed and pathetic, though she couldn't quite know why. He didn't seem bothered by her lack of strength, either. It was as if she was the only one so worked up about it.

The image of his true form suddenly came into Chise's mind. The tall creature who nearly towered over the whole forest alone. He looked a lot like what attacked her today. But she knew that the person behind that monstrous form was her fiance. That he would never harm her intentionally, unlike whatever type of fae had done to her now. Elias had never raised his hand against her...and she was sure he never will.

"Alright." He motioned her forward. "Let me see your wounds."

Chise blinked at him until he motioned again. Reluctantly, she moved herself around in the bath until her back was facing him. He grabbed the soap from the end of the tub and started gently washing the wounds with it. He'd lather a bit and rinse over them. His movements were slow until he grabbed the cloth from the sink. The redhead felt him start to scrape it thoroughly and gritted her teeth.

"Ouch..."

"I'm sorry," Was all he said.

He continued the process until all of the wounds on her body were treated. He rinsed her one last time with a generous amount of water. Elias leaned forward to start draining the tub and finally stood. He grabbed a towel hanging from the rack and turned around to face Chise. She was too busy rubbing her eyes to notice him patiently waiting for her. When he stepped forward, the redhead finally climbed out of the tub and let him dry her without a word.

Her body definitely hurt a lot less now. The bath was short but was relieving, nonetheless. When Chise was mostly dry, Elias took the obligation on wrapping her up in the towel and suddenly scooping her up in his arms. She was surprised at this sudden action until she realized he was carrying her to their room. Chise relaxed in his grip and sighed in content.

"Thank you." She smiled. The magus nuzzled her side in response.

"Of course. As always."

When they reached their room, Elias closed the door behind them. He gently set Chise on her side of the bed as he started to rummage through her closet. The redhead clutched at the end of the towel as she watched him with curious eyes. He came back in the midst of his searing to offer her clean underwear, then went back to her drawers. After he searched them for awhile, the magus turned to her.

"What do you usually wear as a nightgown?" He asked.

"Actually..." She blushed. "Could I just wear one of your shirts for tonight? It won't stick to the wounds and I really like...well..."

The redhead became tongue-tied and started mumbling incomprehensible words. Her blush was deepening and she hunched her shoulders in embarrassment. It was so brave of her to ask something like that. It had secretly been something she was planning to do, but just didn't know when to ask. She felt relieved when Elias got up and walked over to his drawers. He grabbed a clean white t-shirt from one of them and handed it over to her.

"Here," He said. "You shouldn't be embarrassed. I find it rather cute."

This only made Chise blush some more. She turned away from him as she dropped the towel and quickly threw over his shirt on her. She slipped on her undergarment from underneath and took a look at her new pajamas. Elias' shirt went just a bit after he knees...

The magus watched her from the side and curved his pupils in delight. "It looks even more adorable now. Should you wear my vest tomorrow night as well?"

The redhead placed a hand over her burning cheeks. "Elias!"

He chuckled and went forward to ruffle her hair playfully. She went to swat at his bare hand until the pain came back. She cringed and held the side of her arm to try and ease it. Elias went forward and wrapped his arms around her, gently squeezing her frame. Chise nearly went breathless as he did so.

"Applying pressure should help," His hand rested over her back. "Don't try to push yourself, Chise. You'll make it worse if you do."

The magus gave another squeeze before he returned to his drawers. He picked out a pair of pajamas himself and was quick to change into them. While he did so, Chise decided to try and slip into bed as carefully as she could. By the time he was done changing, the redhead was still trying different positions to see what was most comfortable. It seemed like everything bothered her one way or the other...

She looked up and found his skull giving her an amused look. The blush returned as she looked away from him. Slowly, she muttered. "It's...really hard to get comfy..."

"I see."

Elias climbed into bed and wrapped himself around her. He took her in his arms and placed her gently in his lap, leaning her back so she was lying just comfortably. He dragged the blankets over their figures until the two of them were perfectly adjusted. The way Elias propped her upwards seemed to rid any of the pain left. Chise blinked and craned her head to smile at him.

"You sure know what to do at times like these, Elias."

"I'd certainly hope so." He replied. "It's my job to take care of you. If tending to cuts like those is part of the job, then I might as well be useful doing it."

The redhead went quiet as she trailed her hands over his arms. They were wrapped around her so protectively, yet left room for her to move and not cause harm or pressure. She enjoyed it tremendously. She gave him a firm squeeze with her hands as she rested her head on the side of his arm. Elias used his thumb to trail over her chin gently.

"It's a shame that what happened happened." He commented. "I appreciate Ruth aiding you and you trying to defend yourself, Chise. The matters were just...serious."

"I had no idea that the fae can be that strong." She admitted. "I was kind of used to seeing such small creatures that...well, I underestimated it."

Elias tsked. "Poor judgement can end up with something like this. Take me for instance. You wouldn't assume I'd have so many forms?"

"I was actually ready for surprises with you, to be honest." She smiled. "There are still a lot of things I don't know about you, Elias."

His grasp around her momentarily tightened until he relaxed himself. He leaned down to rest his skull on top of her head as he gently hummed. Chise listened to his voice and closed her eyes to relish its sound. It seemed so rare to hear him that happy...he usually didn't express emotion through his voice. The magus suddenly pulled back and wiped the end of his skull.

"I'm still working on it. I felt at some point today I knew more about my past."

"Really?" The redhead looked up at him in surprise. He nodded.

"Yes...I know Lindel admitted to you my first memory of the color red. Seeing you in such harm like this again just reminds me why it feels so familiar. I believe that red was blood. In what way, I'm not sure..."

"Blood?" Chise asked concernedly. "That doesn't sound very good. I wonder what it was?"

"I wonder that as well. I suppose I'll have to remember it overtime. But not in another circumstance like this...I don't want _this_ happening again. I don't like harm coming to you."

She nuzzled her head on his chest gently. She slowly nodded her head and admitted, "I don't, either."

The magus made a rather pleased noise. He leaned forward in bed to turn off the lamp that was set to the side. The room was immediately engulfed in darkness, only lit by the moonlight that reflected through the window behind them. Chise clutched at the end of his sleeves in the dark and smiled. Her thoughts were a lot warmer and happier now.

"If you hurt during any part of the night, alarm me and I'll take care of it." She heard Elias tell her. Chise nodded her head in the dark.

"I will. I actually don't hut as much when I'm with you, Elias."

Another noise. The redhead could never get tired of those. She wasn't lying, either. The pain seemed to have left her at this exact moment. She wouldn't want to leave this position anytime soon, so a night of good rest seemed to be waiting for her. Chise leaned back and rested her red hair on Elias' chest quietly.

The two soon dazed off into slumber, Chise clutching onto Elias and him holding her protectively. Absolutely nothing could get to her like this, and she wanted to keep it that way. Protection and safety she valued most, which was only a few of what Elias had to offer her.


	17. My Everything

"Ruth! Ru-uuuuuth~"

The redhead's audible whistles echoed through the silence of the Ainsworth household. There was a brief pause afterwards, then the shuffling of feet and paws. Chise Hatori glanced out of one doorway and tried to peer into the hallway beside her. She was wearing light clothes today, only consisting of a white t-shirt and a pair of small, black shorts. Her flip flops noisily clanked on her heel while she searched the various rooms to find sight of her familiar.

"Ruth, come on!" She called. "I'll give you a treat afterwards, I promise!"

She heard the sound of his nails scraping against the hard wood floor. When she turned around, she saw the end of a black tail disappear into the kitchen. Chise quickly followed after and found Ruth standing in the middle of it, looking around as if he were trying to hide. When he turned his head and saw his familiar grabbing for him, Ruth jumped out from her grasp and easily dodged through the doorway.

 _"There's no need for you to give me a bath!"_ She heard him yell. Chise looked in the other room and found his red eyes underneath the couch.

"Yes, there **is**." Chise glared at him. "Remember when you splashed in that puddle yesterday when it was raining?"

"So?" He retorted.

" _So_ you need a bath! The mud just doesn't leave your fur when you change forms, you know."

Ruth's response was to climb even further under the couch until his rear bumped the wall. The redhead went down on all fours and hastily grabbed at him. She felt his breath on her hand but he wouldn't come closer. His body was just an inch out from her reach. Chise groaned as she swatted at him before giving up entirely.

She sighed and asked, "Please? Good boys take baths, you know."

"That's so stereotypical." Ruth snorted. "Just because I'm a dog, you assume I want to be a good boy?"

"Last time I said it you got pretty excited." Chise amusingly crossed her arms. His red eyes averted her gaze.

"I still say no. I can bathe myself just fine, thank you."

"As a dog, you can't. You need someone else to do it, and I don't see any problems with me bathing you. Come on out, Ruth."

The black grim refused to budge from where he was. Chise sat back on her knees and frowned. He really did make a mess of himself. She could only imagine what the Silky would do if she found mud on the couch or on one of the beds. Chise was just trying to save Ruth from the guilt trip now. It was such a shame he was so stubborn. Though, she couldn't deny that she was, either.

An idea suddenly came to mind. Chise quickly stood on her feet and made her way into the kitchen. She scrambled through one of the drawers until she found what she was looking for. She tucked it into her palm and out of sight. When she closed the drawer, she heard a paw suddenly scrape against the floor. When the redhead peeked out of the kitchen, she found Ruth slowly come out. His eyes caught the sight of her and he quickly stuck his head underneath the couch again.

"Ruth!" The redhead called, skipping over in front of the couch and leaning down.

She found him glaring at her from the darkness and smirked. Slowly, she revealed what was in her hand. It was one of the typical dog treats you could buy at the store, though this one was just freshly purchased from a few days ago. Ruth perked up at the sight and went forward to sniff it. Chise didn't move while he did so but only pulled her hand back once he tried to snag it from her.

She waved her finger at him. "Ah-ah! You only get _this_ if you let me give you a bath. Do we have a deal?"

The redhead gave him big puppy eyes of her own and titled her head with a smile. Even Ruth could admit that she could be adorable if she truly wanted to. Reluctantly, her familiar slowly removed himself from under the couch until his body was in the open. He stood in front of Chise before sitting down firmly. He gave her a blank look as he looked up at her. He was visibly trying not to show her that he was upset to succumbing a bath for a mere treat. A dog thing, he supposed.

Chise leaned down and patted his head. "Good boy, Ruth. Come on, I'm bathing you outside."

Ruth huffed before he turned around and started walking out of the Den. Chise quickly followed after him and slipped the treat back into her shorts for later. The dog kept looking back at her while he made his way through the kitchen again. They used the back door to walk out into the green yard and found a large, brown bucket sitting in the open. There were a few bottles and scrubs placed to the side that were just calling out Ruth's name.

The grim looked up at her and slowly took a step back. "You know, maybe I can just bathe in a nearby pond instead..."

"No!" The redhead grabbed him. "We made a deal. Go and sit in the tub while I fill it with water, okay?"

Ruth ducked his head and nodded sadly. He went over to the tub and sniffed the rim of it. Nothing really new. The sight of it just always made him unsettled. He climbed into it slowly and sat in the middle. He watched as Chise grabbed the hose, rolled her sleeves up, and started to pour water in the tub. He flinched when the water came into contact with his fur.

"Does it have to be so cold!?" He snapped.

"Don't blame me, blame the summer." She replied. Ruth narrowed his eyes. She seemed to be enjoying this...

"Just make this quick. I can't stand baths."

"Clearly. Do you want the lavender-scented shampoo or the mango-scented one?"

The dog looked over at the two bottles she was holding. Chise was wearing an innocent smile and looked abnormally pure. The sight of it made him miss Isabelle. He turned his snout away from her and huffed. He'd been hoping for something like the shampoo he used as a human. They smelt a lot more masculine rather than leaving him smelling like apples.

He replied, "Mango."

Chise nodded and set the other bottle to the side. The weather around them was rather warm. Few clouds spotted the sky and left a good portion of the sun to shine down on England. The redhead was surprised Silky wasn't out here. She usually enjoyed weather like this. The redhead finished filling in the tub and went to wet Ruth's coat. He took a step back in the tub from the cold until he was ushered forward by Chise.

"Can't you just make it hotter?" He asked. "It's too cold."

"No, Ruth, I can't. You're just going to have to deal with it."

He flinched when she went forward to rub his fur. He relaxed once his body got used to its temperature. Chise suddenly set the hose aside and started to pour some shampoo into the palm of her hand. It came out in an abnormal color that made Ruth's eyes widen. When she went forward to lather it onto his coat, Ruth took a step out from the tub. This earned an immediate scold from his familiar.

"Ruth! Get back in, I haven't even lathered you yet!"

"I.." He paused. Chise took advantage of this and grabbed him. She started to lather his coat and rub it into his skin. Ruth's eyes widened, for he momentarily enjoyed this. It was rather cold, but something that didn't feel too bad. It was only when Chise reached for the scrub she had to the side when he jumped out of the rub entirely.

"RUTH!" She yelled.

He shook his fur, which sent waves of soapy water onto the grass around them. Chise stood and ran towards him, which made the grim run into the completely opposite direction. The redhead started chasing him around with soapy hands and was scolding him the whole time. All the while Ruth was avoiding getting near that dreaded tub again...

"I just need to rinse you!" She helplessly called. "This is being a _bad boy_ , Ruth! You won't get a treat if you don't get back in!"

The various fae and cotton flies around them watched the scene with interest. It was rather amusing seeing their treasured Robin chastising her own familiar, which happened to be a grim. Chise eventually lost one of her flip flops and had to stop to grab it again. When she looked up, Ruth was already far from her sight and near the meadows.

Stubbornly, the redhead crossed her arms and called, "Fine! I'll just tell the Silky to hide all of your treats until you start behaving again!"

Ruth turned his head and closed his eyes, a usual sign of sass from him. Chise narrowed her eyes as she continued, "-Or I'll just head into the market and give it to someone else's dog!"

A sense of jealousy suddenly came to him. Ruth turned his head back to her and sighed. It was a canine thing to be jealous of other animals. He ran back to her quickly in hopes of forgiveness. The rest of the shampoo bubbles slid off his fur and he seemed to be completely dry when he came back to Chise. She sighed and led him back to the tub, making sure she had one hand on him while she did so.

When she sat him back in, she poured some more shampoo into her hand and wet him down once more. She started to lather his fur and used the brush. He absolutely hated the thing. It felt like it was scratching him too hard rather than the enjoyable level he was used to. He started clawing to get out of the tub and Chise noticed it right away. She huffed as she suddenly set the brush down.

"You know, they say bathing your dog is a great way to bond and show affection to them," She said. "And what do I get from you, Ruth?"

She turned to him and purposely stuck her lower lip out. Ruth eyed her and felt a bit guilty. But when he noticed that her hands were no longer on him, he took off running. But instead of running into the grass like he did before, he ran right through one of the open windows. Chise gasped when she saw him jump through, and sprang to her feet to go and chase him.

She threw the door open and ran through the kitchen. She found Ruth now, covered in water and still shaking his fur to get all the furniture wet, too. She opened her mouth to scold him until he took off running again. Chise ran after him until she saw a familiar figure suddenly walk in the middle of the hallway. She had no time to gasp.

 **"ELIAS, CATCH HIM!"**

The tall magus looked up from his envelopes and found the black grim charging in his direction. He had no time to react, for he was suddenly knocked down onto the ground a moment after. Ruth quickly jumped off of Chise's teacher and scurried up the stairs to escape. The redhead ran in his direction but stopped once she saw Elias sprawled on the floor. She leaned down beside him almost immediately.

"I'm so sorry! I was trying to give Ruth a bath, and he was being really difficult, so he ran off, and-"

"I haven't...fallen like this in such a...long time."

The redhead blinked when she saw Elias lift his skull and rub the back of his horn in pain. The envelopes were now scattered all over the floor underneath him. Chise noticed the pile and leaned down to gather them. The magus was eventually back on his feet and hastily took them from her hands. He looked through them to make sure that they were all picked up. As soon a that was done, he looked down at her curiously.

"So...what was your story, again?"

"Oh!" Chise shook her head. "Ruth just ran off from his bath and made a mess. I really hope Silky doesn't get too mad. I'll clean it all up if I have to-"

"-Not necessary." Elias patted her head. "I'm sure she won't mind. I actually read that bathing Ruth was on her To-Do list for today."

She cocked her head. "Really? Huh."

"She has a firm grip, so I'm sure he won't be escaping her." He chuckled. "Thank you for doing your best, Chise. I would've helped you if you had just asked, you know."

She blushed. The thought hadn't even come to her. She really should've gotten him when Ruth was hiding underneath that couch. His arms were a lot longer than hers, and he could've held Ruth down the entire bath, too! She regretted this instantly and looked away from him shyly.

"Yeah, I'm sorry...I'll keep that in mind for next time, I promise."

"I don't think there will _be_ a next time."

Elias placed a gloved hand in front of his skull. Chise opened her mouth to inquire, and he simply pointed up the stairs. She turned around and found Silky escorting Ruth down the steps now. He hung his lead low in defeat, looking rather embarrassed. Silky turned to give Chise a quick smile before disappearing out of sight. The redhead followed them until she saw Silky dunk Ruth back in the tub outside. She watched in awe as the brownie bathed him with much less trouble.

She heard Elias come beside her and watched them as well. He gave another pat on Chise's shoulder and set the envelopes down on a nearby table. The redhead sighed and smiled. Silky didn't seem to mind bathing Ruth. She actually had a bit of a smile while brushing him...Maybe this would be her thing? Bathing Ruth when he really needs it?

"This reminds me of the day of the auction," Elias suddenly said. Chise turned to him with a confused look.

"How?" She asked.

"When I gave you a bath." He curved his pupils. "You remember, don't you? You fussed exactly like that...except I wasn't going to let you run away."

The redhead blushed deeply at the memory. When he saw her naked...she wouldn't ever forget it. She only tried to escape him because it wasn't necessary. Thinking back on it, she probably would have sprinted out the house if he did let go. She felt a bit thankful that he held on when he did.

"I-I guess..." She sheepishly smiled. "Didn't you used to call me your Puppy, at the time?"

"I thought the nickname would have little meaning now." He leaned down and nuzzled her hair. "You grew on me a different way. I'd rather call you my angel now."

Chise choked. "An-Angel!?"

"Or darling. Or perhaps sweetheart? I rather enjoy 'My Love' the best, don't you think?"

Her face was completely red now. She clutched at her chest and felt her heart beating rather rapidly. What was with all these nicknames? They sounded cute, yet certainly out of the ordinary. But it made her a bit tingly to hear them in Elias' voice. Like some part of her actually wanted to hear it from him someday.

She took a deep, shaky breath. "I-I think..."

Elias interrupted her. "I was only joking, Chise. Although, if you do want me to use those, just let me know...I have a few more suggestions if you're interested?"

"Really?" She found herself interested. "What are they?"

"Simply referring to you as my wife or my Robin. I found a book in my library with all sorts of nicknames. A lot of them just fitted how I feel for you."

"I really like 'My Robin'." She admitted with a smile. "All the fae do it, but I only like hearing it from you."

"Ah. I'll keep that in mind, then." He replied. hise started going through her mind on what to call _him_. When one in particular came to her head, she started to mess with her hair coyly. She heard so many other couples use it, but it was so true to her...

"I guess, by that logic," She said. "I could call you my other half?"

Elias looked down at her and suddenly tilted his skull. Chise opened to take it back until he suddenly wrapped his arms around her and squeezed. The redhead relished his touch and squeezed back as hard as she could. When the magus released and took a step back, she could tell by the look of his eyes that he was happy.

"I'm glad you feel that way." He admitted. She blushed and nodded.

"You are my everything, Elias...Always have been..."

She closed her eyes tightly and tried to calm herself down. That felt like yet another confession to him...and it probably was. Elias made an amused noise as he kissed the top of her head and grabbed the envelopes again. He flipped through them casually without saying another word. Chise sighed in relief. Right when she was about to leave the kitchen, she heard him call to her.

"You are my everything, too." He said.


	18. Heartbeat

_Thump, thump, thump._

The rhythm of a steady heartbeat gently pounded against Chise's ear. It was a very continuous pattern, one that never seemed to speed up or slow down. It was almost an addiction for her to hear it whenever she could. Its gentle repetition almost sent her to sleep during some nights, but it often reminded her that even a creature like him could own a heart. An organ that was capable of many things, but often seen as a symbol of love. At least, to humans like her.

At one point, Chise used to believed that Elias didn't have a heart. It was earlier when they met, when she knew very little about him and all the other fae. It was such an ignorant thing to assume, thinking back on it, but it seemed reasonable at the time. She didn't exactly know what to think of him when he bought her. The image of him owning a heart, or anything that appeared similar to Chise, was unnerving.

The redhead gently stirred from his chest, gently turning herself around so she faced the other way. She saw a book with its contents expanded as a gloved hand held onto its corner and side. Elias' thumb was pressed gently against the side of the page, and she could see the bookmark was hanging down from its spine. The pages themselves looked quite aged, but that was probably because of how long it had been stored in his library. The text was far too small for her to read from this angle.

The book suddenly rose out from her sight. Chise followed its direction and realized that Elias had lifted it up, giving her more room to move. The redhead happily took the chance to settle again as she laid on top of him and pressed her face gently against her chest. She didn't move after that, so Elias took the chance to gently lower the book once again and resume his reading.

Her eyes fluttered as she continued to listen to his heartbeat. Its vibration was already starting to make her somnolent. Her hand trailed upwards on the surface of his t-shirt before resting on his neck. She gently rubbed the end of her fingers on his neck, suddenly forgetting how warm his skin could truly be. There was a gentle noise of the book shutting from behind her, but she paid no mind to it.

In the midst of her feeling his skin, Elias spoke. He lowered his skull to look at her and asked, "Yes?"

"Yes...what?" She asked, drowsy.

"I thought you were asleep a moment ago." He explained. "Did I wake you?"

"No, nothing like that." She slowly shook her head. "I like to listen to your heartbeat, is all."

He made a rather amused noise, starting to take off his gloves and setting them on the nightstand beside the bed. "-That's a rather peculiar thing to say for humans, isn't it?"

Chise blushed, suddenly feeling embarrassed that it sounded so odd. She really should have worded it better. "I mean, it's just so soothing. Sometimes our heartbeats can go all over the place. Yours is always so steady..."

She pressed her ear against his chest to listen again. The pattern didn't change and remained the same as before. Her muscles relaxed at the sound and she sighed contently. It did honestly puzzle her on why it was always like this. Was he just usually calm, or was it a different reason?

Elias could tell she was thinking and started to rub her back. He said, "It's really difficult to startle or alarm me. I suppose it's also because of biological reasons, but that's mainly it."

"Hmm." She sounded.

She was still engrossed in its sound, like a hypnotic effect was suddenly taking her. Chise closed her eyes and was about to try and rest for the night until she suddenly felt Elias' hands come underneath her arms. Her eyes opened as he suddenly lifted her up and carefully placed her head on his shoulder. He used his other hand to rest on her back, though she could feel him pressing her body against his.

"Yours is somewhat fast." He said after awhile.

She blinked, clearly confused. "Wha-? You mean my heartbeat?"

"Yes." He replied, gently lowing her back down. "I normally hear it all the time - I just wanted a closer listen."

She cocked her head to the side, questions now filling her mind. She never really understood how his hearing worked. She assumed it had something to do with his horns, but that couldn't be it. He once said that it was so sensitive he could hear flesh tear. Was her heartbeat really that audible for him? And...what did that exactly mean?

Chise looked away from him and shrugged. "Yeah, sometimes I can't really control it."

Elias looked down at her curiously. He used the end of his finger to direct her gaze back at him, turning her head so it was in his direction. She looked a bit surprised, for he rarely did this, but looked at him attentively, anyway. Her green eyes looked beautiful, but he recognized the sign whenever she was hiding something.

"Judging by your reaction...I'm assuming that your heart is affected by the things around you?" He asked. She took a moment to process his question and soon nodded.

"Yeah...why do you ask, Elias?"

He sat up in the bed, leaning towards her a bit closer. "Well, you've got me curious, now. How does it work? Mine processes differently, but I don't understand my own heart as well as you know yours."

The redhead took a moment to gather her thoughts. She placed a finger to her lips and furrowed her eyebrows as she sat there quietly. She eventually looked back at him with a shrug. "Well, it's like any other human's, I guess. If we're excited or moving a lot, then it's faster. If we're calm and laying down or something, then it's slower."

"Are you sure?" He asked. "Sometimes your pattern is faster when you're with me. Even during times when we're not really doing anything."

Chise blushed, suddenly realizing the answer. She wouldn't have ever assumed he'd have caught onto something like that. She didn't even realize he kept track of it until now. But Elias had always been so intuitive, so it was only a matter of time until he'd ask about it. She just wasn't prepared for it.

She tried her best to hide the red on her cheeks. "Well, our hearts can also...go fast if we're with someone who makes us nervous, or-"

"I make you nervous?" He suddenly repeated.

"-No! Not like that!" The redhead bit her lip, thinking of what to say. "I mean...in a good way. You know?"

He stared at her blankly, clearly not understanding what she just said. Chise fought against the urge start hitting herself. Why was she being so hesitant on admitting this to him? They were a lot closer now, so there really should be no shame. After awhile, the redhead let out a shaky breath. She gently laid her head back down on his chest so she wouldn't have to look at him.

"What I mean is...our hearts beat a lot faster if we're with someone we love." She admitted. "I think it means our bodies long for them, or we're just really happy in their presence."

Her grasp on his t-shirt tightened as she braced herself for his response. It was really so weird admitting this to him. She was never good with expressing herself, especially when it came to love. What really discouraged her was that he couldn't relate. His heartbeat was always the same no matter how much he was with her. Unlike hers, which always gave it away...

"Ah." He finally responded. "That explains quite a lot."

"Mhmm..." Chise squeezed his shirt again and shut her eyes. "It's not a big deal - sometimes it just randomly happens, too."

Elias chuckled. "No, I believe the first option is right, in this situation. You _do_ love me, right?"

"Of course."

"And I love you, too." He gently pressed his snout on her head. "Although, I do find times where mine goes a little faster as well."

She couldn't help but look up at him with curious eyes. She didn't think that was possible until now. "Really?"

"Yes. But in my case, it's rather bad. It only happens when I'm about to lose you, or if I even think of losing you. I feel it go faster in...worry, I suppose."

"That's odd. It's kind of opposite to human's hearts, then?"

"I wouldn't say that."

Elias placed his scaly hand on the back of her head and gently motioned her further into his chest. Chise placed a hand on his shirt as she continued to listen to his heartbeat. She relished its sound, but widened her eyes when the vibrations increased. She listened to it and realized that it was going faster now. Not too fast like human's tended to do, but was definitely a change in its usual rhythm.

While she listened to this process quicken, he spoke again.

"See, it happens when I think of you in...romantic ways. Certain ways that make me miss or long for you, too. I think my heart reacts as it wants to by this point. I'll never really understand it, truthfully."

Chise couldn't help but smile, suddenly assured by his words. So...his heart reacted to love, too? That was quite a relief. She giggled as she listened to it. She heard it go even faster after he heard her laugh just now. It was so cute. Elias must feel the same way when hers acts up as well.

"We often connect hearts with love, too." She said. "Because it responds to it right away. I guess yours doesn't know what to do, Elias."

"It functions just fine, which is all I require from it."

The redhead rolled her eyes at his oblivious answer. She snuggled deeper into his chest and continued listening to the pattern. It went back to its slower pace now, but she wasn't complaining. Its vibration was actually calming her again. When she relaxed on top of him again, Elias took this chance to turn off the lamp beside them and quietly settle in the darkness. Him listening to her heartbeat; her listening to his.

Just before Chise would succumb to sleep, she gently poked his chest. She slowly closed her eyes and murmured, "I love you..."

His heartbeat quickened. The redhead smiled and slowly traced her hand over where his heart was. It kept beating faster as he replied:

"I love you more."


	19. Studying

"Add a few drops of dust, combine mixture into new cup, and...wait, was it a _few_ drops, or just one? Ruth, can you help me?"

A distressed and droopy-eyed Chise glanced over to her familiar. Ruth was currently sitting beside her desk and eying all of the items on its wooden surface. There was a pile of scattered papers beneath the stacks of books and miscellaneous magic items and tools. He recognized quite a handful of them, but there was clear organization among them. Chise had spent 15 minutes planning what she was going to study for that night, yet she was taking over 2 hours going through all of the material.

After awhile, he responded. "I think you should rest."

Chise stops in her pacing. She slowly set down whatever she had in her hand. Probably some things for a spell or something of the sort. Her familiar had honestly stopped listening a minute into her dialogue. The redhead had been bantering and was stressing over the smallest of details. Ruth didn't quite like her worrying about things like these, so he was going to insist her going to bed.

She took a moment to think about it and shook her head. "No, because Elias and I have a session tomorrow. He's going to quiz on me this..."

"On _what_ exactly?" The grim glanced back at the table. "I see 3 different books here and old notes there. There's quite a lot you're reviewing if it's just for one thing."

"I just want it all to be perfect." The redhead answered. "The last time I messed up, I felt really embarrassed. I don't want that happening again..."

Ruth cocked his head to the side, recalling the memory. If he remembered correctly, Chise had spilled one of the ingredients onto the floor during their experimentation and nearly messed up what she had been doing with Elias. Ainsworth cleaned it up and assured her that it was only an accident, but the redhead had overreacted. He was sure that Elias would forgive her if she let a few details slip her mind.

"We all have flaws, Chise. You really should get some rest, I can see the bags under your eyes."

She pressed her hand under her eye and felt the bags for herself. She turned away from him ashamedly and continued working on studying. She pulled her chair back up and opened the book, continuing to scan the page and read its text. Ruth waited a few moments to see if she'd get up and comply to his suggestion, but she continued to sit there and read instead.

The grim took a step forward and watched her from beside the desk. Her eyes were constantly closing and she couldn't sit up straight from fatigue. Her skin looked paler than usual. The bags under her eyes didn't look too good, either. Ruth made a noise of disapproval.

"If you decide to sleep sometime soon, then I'll be here." He commented, walking over to the bed. "It's a lot healthier than staying up and studying like this."

He let his words hang in the room as he jumped on the bed and made himself comfortable in the blankets. He soon shut his eyes and drifted off to sleep soon after. The room became a lot more quiet and darker when his breathing slowed. Chise became stiff in her chair as she continued to study the pages quietly, contemplating the advice Ruth gave her. She decided against it and shook her head.

 _Sleep?_ She thought to herself. _I've got too much work to study for. I hope Ruth understands..._

So she continued to quietly study for a good portion of the night, flipping pages and scribbling down notes whenever she could. Every moment she'd feel her eyes droop and would have to wake herself up. She already had 2 cups of coffee before her studying session - a third one would really do no more good at this point. Chise was practically forcing her eyelids open when the clock struck midnight.

Startled by the noise, the redhead turned in her chair and finally realized what time it was. She decided to ignore this as she spun back around and continued studying. The time really didn't mean anything. Her session started in the afternoon, anyway, so she wouldn't have to worry about losing any sleep. Assured by this, Chise continued to study and fight sleep at the same time.

It's only when she hears footsteps down the halls that she stops. She looks up from her book and finds a pair of glowing, red eyes staring back at her in the dark. She jumps a bit, momentarily startled by the sight, but quickly came back to her nerves. She shut her book and stuffed her notes underneath it so they were out of sight. She wore a sheepish grin as she turned to her doorway and hid her hands behind her back.

"Hi, Elias." She waved. "What are you doing up so late?"

"I could ask the same of you," He responded from the dark. Chise opened her mouth to reply, but heard him shuffle out from the hallway. He approached her room and ducked through the doorway, looking around quietly.

The redhead took a look around her room as well. There was only one source of light on at that moment, and it was from the lamp sitting on the end of her desk. The rest of the room was barely illuminated, though the outline of Ruth's figure was quite visible. Not that she was worried about hiding anything else. Her room was almost always clean, so Elias wandering in wasn't concerning to her.

The magus looked to her desk and tilted his skull at the sight. Chise realized how unorganized it must look to him. She leaned over it casually and rested her head in the palm of her hand. All it did was almost make her almost fall asleep, but she'd widen her eyes the moment they'd try to lower.

"What is this?" Elias asked, leaning down to observe a paper. Thankfully, he hadn't caught the sight of one of her notes - rather, a list of what she needed to study. Chise sighed in relief when he picked it up and started reading it.

"Just a study list." She replied. "For tomorrow's test."

"While I do appreciate the research..." His eyes came off of the paper. "Why are you doing it so late? You really should be studying in the early evening, Chise."

She was quick to defend herself. "Well, there's a lot to study. And I want to do it really well, so I thought I'd cover everything tonight?"

The tall monster looked back at the paper and slowly registered everything. He must have been tired as well. Elias didn't take too long to reply, and Chise noticed his slow movements and slightly relaxed frame. He was in his pajamas rather than his clothes, so he must've waken up or had just prepared to sleep. Chise bit her lip when she felt him come closer to her.

"You should sleep," He suggested. The redhead rolled her eyes.

"Ruth said the same thing! Really, I'm okay. I'll sleep when I'm done. And I'm almost finished with studying the last-"

"You should sleep," He repeated, a bit more firmly. Chise blinked a couple of times and shook her head.

"No, I-"

He suddenly reached over to shut her book and stared back at her. The redhead did nothing as she sat there in surprise. Elias took this to his advantage as he continued to shut and put everything away. He didn't even question or make a deal about the notes - he simply slid them to the side and out of sight. Chise rose a finger only after he was done.

"But I wasn't finished!" She cried. "I'll be unprepared if I stop now, Elias."

"Good." He stood back up straight. "I'd rather have you unprepared than sleep deprived. Now, please, get to bed."

The two of them heard Ruth release an amused noise, but neither of them questioned it. Chise was still registering what he done, constantly looking at her desk and back at him with a surprised look. Elias realized she wasn't moving and decided to lean down and pick her up. His arms wrapped around her frame with ease and he started leading her back to the bed.

The redhead realized what he was doing after he had laid her down. She went to sit up until he ushered her back down above the blankets. Chise tried it again and had to fight against his strong grip. She really couldn't retaliate - he was far more stronger than she could comprehend. After a few seconds of this, she sighed and gave up. Elias released his hand once he was sure she wouldn't try and flee.

"Ah, good. I see we made progress." He stated.

"I just want to be good as your apprentice." She admitted, crossing her arms on the bed. "It takes a lot of work, you know. This hasn't even been my longest study session."

"I understand it takes a lot of work." He said and leaned down. "How do you think I became one? I balanced my time very well. Studying should only be an hour or two. And it shouldn't be at bedtime."

Chise puffed her lower lip in defeat. He had a point, though she didn't quite want to admit it. Reluctantly, she slipped off her shoes and leaned over to take her socks off. Elias seemed content that he had won over, and went to leave the room until she called for him.

"Elias!"

He stopped in his tracks and turned to her. "Yes?"

"Just why..." She gathered her thoughts. "Why do you care if I overwork myself?"

The magus slowly walked back over to her and sat next to her on the bed. He ruffled her red hair and replied, "Because I care about you deeply. Sleep is very important for a lot of creatures - and I know how required it is among humans. Not to mention the magic you use when you are pushing yourself."

Her green eyes glistened in the dark, and they slowly traveled to the ground. She tried to say something, but shut her mouth as she rested her head on her pillow. Elias leaned down to lay a kiss on her forehead and rubbed the top of her head once more. His touch was definitely soothing; she couldn't deny that. But she still didn't understand why he cared about her so much.

"Would you mind sleeping with me?" She asked.

Elias tilted his skull, but obeyed, nonetheless. He climbed over and rested at the spot beside her. Ruth stirred from below their feet, but didn't bother moving. Chise quickly removed her clothes, only keeping on her undershirt and underwear. She dropped the garments to the side as she slipped under the blankets and scooted closer to Elias.

"Is there a reason you wanted me here?" He asked, still adjusting in her bed.

"I don't know..." She rubbed her eyes. "It's just really relaxing to hear from my own teacher that I don't need to study that hard. It's all I ever heard in school. To study all the time."

"It's only healthy if you manage your time wisely." He replied. "I do hope that, the next time you study, it'll be when the sun is still in the sky?"

"Yeah, don't worry. It will." She replied.

She buried herself in the covers and started to relax. It felt so good to close her eyes rather than fighting sleep. She rested almost immediately, and Elias decided to lay just beside her on his stomach. He placed his arms underneath her other pillow and laid his skull on its soft surface. Right before they both went to sleep for the night, Chise poked his side.

"If I do bad during our test tomorrow...will you help me study?" She asked. Elias rose his skull to nod.

"Of course, Chise. But only if you get your rest. I do hope I won't be seeing you like this again?"

The redhead blushed, forgetting about her unflattering composition. She slowly nodded her head as she rested it against his shoulder. Elias leaned over to nuzzle her before laying it back on the pillow and closing his orbs. The two of them laid there and let the stress leave their bodies, the silence around them comforting the temporary break from all the difficulties life had to handle.


	20. Closet

Females were so difficult to comprehend. Ruth had his moments with Isabel, where, at times, she refused to open up to him and instead kept her emotions to herself. He never understood why it always applied to women. Usually, other guys weren't as hostile with certain matters like girls were. They were hard to read, and Ruth would certainly know. From what he's known with Chise, of course.

And at moments like these, where the redhead had fallen into another depressive episode and refused to budge about her feelings, Ruth couldn't blame himself. He offered her his help plenty of times, only to get a shake of the head or a stern "no". It pained him to be rejected by his familiar. He was here to aid her - to be by her side until her final days. Someone for her to trust when the world seemed to be against her. To be treated like the exact opposite confused the grim deeply.

When his worry for her sake of being got desperate, Ruth would result back to Elias. One of the only other people Chise opened up to. He supposed it was because of her feelings for him, but it still perplexed him on why she wasn't more open with someone who could read her mind. If he tried to look into what she was thinking right now, he'd only get an image and sound that reminded him greatly of static.

So he really had no other choice. Elias, himself, seemed worried as well. A bit more frantic than he should be, but it was only out of care. Both him and Ruth loved Chise - so sharing their moments of concern was pretty much the _one_ thing connecting them. Elias wasn't as open with the grim as he was with Chise.

"Are you sure she's not just sleepy?" The magus inquired when Ruth told him. The dog shook his head firmly, as he was sure that this was more serious.

"She's too quiet. And I know she's gotten sleep. I think this is something you can help her more with than I can."

The grim got up from the floor. Elias dropped what he'd been doing, something about papers or the sort, and followed the dog out of the door. Chise tended to isolate herself somewhere in the house during these times. In places she wouldn't usually be. So the magus was on Ruth's tail as they both looked through the house. They eventually stumbled upon one of the closets in the hallways, big enough to room a person or two.

And when Elias slowly opened the closet, they found Chise hiding in the clothes. Shirts and sweaters tugged off of their hangers and onto the floor, more like it. She looked rather uncomfortable sitting on top of shoes and whatever else was in there. The magus tilted his head and looked down at Ruth for an explanation. The best the grim could do was shrug.

Seeing that she now had visitors, Chise tried to grab a hold of the door and close it. Elias tightened his grasp so she couldn't move it. The redhead lightly huffed and used one of the sweaters to hide her face from them. Her green eyes were moist, but there were no sounds or indication that she'd been crying. It seemed more like she had just been sitting in the dark, rather quietly if he may add.

"Chise?" The man sounded. "Are you alright?"

There was no response, just a light noise of her clinging onto the sweater tightly. Ruth passed Elias a look as he trudged off in the hallway. It was clear that the grim, himself, couldn't do anything - he tried _everything_ by this point. It was wise to leave matters to Elias. He was sure Chise wouldn't do anything to harm herself when he's gone. At least in the magus' supervision.

Elias turned his skull and looked down at her figure. He went to remove the sweatshirt, but felt her grab at it again. She seemed to insist keeping in on her, as if she were trying to shield herself from him. He eventually gave up on trying to remove it and crouched there, watching her slowly breathe from behind the cloth.

"I do hope this isn't a game. I don't think I like it. I can't tell if you're okay."

"I'm...not..." She replied, a bit shaky.

The monster knew that was obvious. He looked around the hallway to see if the Silky was anywhere nearby. Confirming that they were alone, the magus slowly stepped in the closet and leaned down to fit through the doorway. He plopped down in the empty space beside her and looked around. It certainly smelled different in here - a mix of musk and clothes. It was a bit uncomfortable as well, though he wasn't going to complain.

He looked around and rubbed the tip of his jaw with a gloved finger. "I'm not sure if I see the appeal. The closet is nice for storing _things_ , but not people."

Instead of acknowledging his words, the redhead leaned forward and closed the door. This left them in the dark, with faint strands of light coming through the blinds of the door. Elias could now see the particles of dust within them. He turned and looked at Chise, slowly going to remove the sweater from her head.

Apparently, there was no need. She removed it from her head while he reached for it. She tossed it to the side carelessly and sighed deeply. She turned to him and frowned. It looked like she was drained. She was terribly pale, and there were dark circles around her eyes. It reminded Elias of the times she was sick, though he sensed no illness in her.

Gently, he went forward and placed the palm of his hand on her cheek. Her skin felt warm, and oddly moist. He brushed a few red strands of her out of her eye's way. He tucked them behind her ear and kept doing this until her face was clearly visible to him. Despite her clear difference in appearance, he still found her beautiful. He really couldn't imagine a time that he wouldn't. He let out a small noise of satisfaction once every strand was out of the way.

"Much better." He commented. "Now I can see you."

Chise stared at him and didn't change her expression. She looked around in the closet and hugged her knees closer to her chest. She was covered in various clothes. They served more as blankets, as they were far too big for her to wear. Elias had to bunch up his legs so he'd fit in such a small space like this. His posture looked uncomfortable, but he'd been through much worse.

"I'm having an off day." She finally admitted. The magus looked down at her curiously.

"An 'off day'?" He repeated. "What's that?"

Her lip quivered, as if she were going to cry. But a loud gulp sounded after, and she held any tears back. "It's kind of like a day where you feel different, and you're not really sure why."

He leaned towards her more. He was honestly worried about her. He had no idea what this meant, as he still had more to learn about human emotions. But he wanted to get an idea, so persisting on understanding wouldn't hurt.

"Does it mean you're sad? Or depressed? Or are you just anxious about something?"

She shrugged and looked away from him. "I don't know. But I don't feel good. I just want to be alone, but..."

She gulped again, and looked back up at Elias. His orbs were staring at her intently. His presence didn't bother her. She actually preferred him being beside her than _not_ being here at all, like before. She was glad that Ruth fetched him when he did. She actually really missed Elias...but another part of her wanted to be alone. She'd be hugging him otherwise.

"-But what?" He asked.

She rubbed her forehead and furrowed her eyebrows in thought. "I don't know." She said. "I really don't know."

Chise leaned down and placed her head on top of her knees. She was now looking down in her lap. She closed her eyes tightly and wanted to see nothing but darkness. She felt completely empty, as if everything was drained from her. Her touch felt weak. She couldn't even stand. All she wanted was to be alone and sit here in silence for the rest of eternity...

Elias watched her and slowly unraveled his legs. They were placed just next to hers, and she felt his hand linger near her back. He soon judged against it and rested his gloved hand back to his side. He really couldn't understand what she was feeling. There was no way he could aid her properly like another human could.

After awhile of silence and slow shuffles between them, Elias finally spoke. He was unsure if it was the right thing to say, but he was going to say it, anyway. Words of hope and good-nature tended to lighten one's spirits. Perhaps it would work on Chise? Humans tended to focus so much on the negativity. Like he did at times.

"You know I love you, Chise. I treasure your company here at the house more than ever. When you're here with me, I'm warm. And when you're not, I feel cold. You are all I could ever need in this world - this large world filled with things I may not understand. You mean a lot to me, and I hope you know that. I may not say it enough, but I do love you so much."

The redhead couldn't help but get teary-eyed at his words. She clutched at her knees tighter to try and stop herself from crying. She didn't want to. She really didn't. She wanted to remain strong in front of Elias - breaking down would be pathetic. She clenched her teeth and kept all of her strength to try and stop a tear from escaping her eye. Her heart thumped rapidly against her sternum.

"I may not understand what you're feeling," Elias continued. "But I'm here. I am physically beside you, Chise. If you need to tell me anything - even think of something for your familiar to tell me, then I'd be grateful if you did. I don't like it when you keep things from others just for the sake of holding pain. You don't deserve such a thing. You may think so, but I object to such a thought."

She broke down at his last few sentences. A cry escaped her mouth, and she quickly placed a hand over to it to cease the noises. It came to no avail, as she started sobbing uncontrollably. And Elias acted out of instinct when he reached for her and gently set her in his lap. This gave her the chance to clutch at his vest and gently cry into its fabric. He held her face closer to his chest, to shield her from any pain the world would dare lay on her.

He placed a hand on her back and used his other to hold her hand. She gripped it unusually hard - the firmest he'd ever felt from her. He rested the end of his skull on her shoulder and continued to sit there. Listening to her cry was such a heartbreaking thing, but he was learning that it was necessary, sometimes. And no more words really needed to be spoken. He was there for her, and that's truly what mattered.

After a long period of her crying, the painful sounds of hiccups and sobs, Chise finally went quiet. She was now rubbing her fingers against his thumb and staring at his palm with watery eyes. Elias continued to sit there and listen to her breathing against his chest. He still didn't understand why such uplifting words would make her cry, but he wouldn't say anymore for the sake of not hurting her.

"Sometimes I forget." She closed her eyes, eyelashes brushing against his shirt. "Sometimes I forget how much you care about me..."

"And I'm not the only one." He rubbed her back. "The Silky cares about you. I'm sure Ruth does, generously. And any other friends you may have made...I am not the only one, Chise."

She clenched his hand again, swallowing hard not to cry once more. She said, "Yes, but...you _love_ me. Not like they do. You _care_ in a way...I thought no one else would."

He had no response to this. He wasn't sure what to say. His jaw slightly opened and he started to gently squeeze her hand back. He was honestly surprised to hear such a thing. It was the upmost truth, known by them both. What more could be said?

"And I...I love you, too. More, possibly..."

His heart thudded for a moment. Elias started to rub her small thumb, eyes trailing over to the wall in thought. Would it truly be possible for her to love him more? He cared for her a great sum. Over the years, it's just grown to the point where he'd do anything for her. While the magus debated this in his skull, Chise rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you." He heard her mutter. "I didn't think good words would've helped me, but...I guess I'm just so selfish, sometimes. That I forget there's so much positive things to be happy about."

"As long as you're around me, then there always will be."

He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. He held her close to him and relished this. Her scent, her warm body, the feeling of her lips against him...he remembered why he missed this when it was gone. Even if it were in an uncomfortable closet like this, Chise's presence was all he needed to be calm. He never really had any "off" days like her or other humans.

The redhead squeezed him back. As hard as she could with such limited strength. The emptiness now felt like it was being filled with something. A warm feeling that engulfed the once-cold tingles in her body. She finally smiled and sighed again, taking in his presence. Elias really warmed her. In all the ways she longed for, too.

"I never thought you'd be the type of guy to express your feelings." She admitted. "Ruth has a hard time with that."

"I see no reason to hesitate with you. It's not a sign of weakness if it's being truthful with your mate, is it?"

Chise shook her head in his chest very lightly. "No, it isn't. Just...thank you, Elias. For caring about me when I think no one else does."

He laid back on the wall so she was resting on his chest comfortably. His long legs were now pressed against the wall in front of him. An awkward position to outsiders, but a warm embrace to them. Chise relaxed her body in his touch and closed her eyes. It would be most comfortable if she fell asleep like this now - assured and warm, in the arms of the one she knew who loved her most.

Elias kissed her head and rested his gloved hand on top of it. He stared at the wall in front of him in the dark and looked around quietly. His work for the day could wait. After all, his Robin was his first priority. And she'd certainly be from now on, in case she'd ever have another day she felt "off". A time reserved to let her know that she meant absolutely everything to him.

And that would never change.


	21. Hair

His gloved fingers wrapped around the soft strands of auburn hair, slowly uncoiling them to reach the scalp and trail his hands downwards. There wasn't a long way to go, Chise always had rather short hair(though it was growing), but Elias was still fascinated with this mere action. He always found the top of her hair to be beautiful, and the ember-like colors gave him yet another reminder that she was his robin. It felt so wonderfully smooth, too. She took quite good care of her hair, as he encountered only one knot this session he'd been feeling her hair.

"Beautifully red," He commented, fingers trailing over her scalp. "A lot like you, Chise."

The teenager lowered her head and blushed. She hadn't said much during this course, but it felt nice to be sitting in his lap and have him feel her hair. His touch was soft and delicate, much like her hair. He'd been so intrigued with it that they haven't moved for quite awhile. Nothing she minded - she felt really loved feeling like this. Like she was the precious robin like the fae called her as sometimes.

"Thank you..." She said.

She adjusted herself in his lap and continued to stare across the room. Ruth was fast asleep on the floor. He must've been bored with their long session of silence rather than the sound of Elias playing with her hair. He remarked to her, in her mind, that they were so much like a "typical couple" he'd seen before. She didn't understand what he meant at the time, but was getting a little red at the thought now.

"Did you inherit this from your mother or your father?" He asked.

She smiled. "My...my mother."

"Have you always kept it this short?"

She shrugged, her bare shoulder peeking out from her half-crop top. "Yeah, I felt that growing it long made me a lot hotter. So keeping it short was just easier."

Elias brushed her hair behind her ear. "That's quite a thought. Imagining you with long hair, that is."

Chise blinked and tried to paint a mental image. She'd seen many beautiful women before with long hair. Titania, for one. And that Winter Goddess was breathtaking with a head of hair like hers. Chise always compared herself as simple compared to them. Hers wasn't a lot to take in, it wouldn't fly or rush around majestically in the wind like theirs. Imagining herself with hair like that certainly would...make her feel different.

"Do you like long hair, Elias?" The redhead asked.

"Long hair?" He repeated, and she nodded. "Well...I have no preference. I found no need to find such a thing appealing on someone - especially humans."

He extended his arm and started feeling her hair again. His large, gloved hands felt overwhelming on her head, but she completely trusted him. He hadn't caused harm to her before. And his touch was warm and soothing like always. So she naturally went into his touch and slightly moaned when his hands came down to her neck. Something noticed by both of them but went unaddressed.

"You, however..." He continued. "I find you beautiful in every way. Your hair is wonderful the way it is. It isn't very often you'd find fae with such short hair like yours."

"Really?"

"Yes. You're special Chise."

She finally looked behind herself and got a good look at Elias. This whole time she'd been listening to his voice and feeling his grip that she hadn't taken a glance at his figure for awhile. He was sitting with his t-shirt on, baggy as usual. And his sleeves were rolled up so they revealed his purple, scaly skin from underneath. A smooth feeling that felt wonderful when he rested his arm on her shoulder.

She rested her head on the side of his hand. "Thank you, Elias..."

Chise gently rose her head as he continued to feel the ends of her hair. She never really felt that big on her hair until now. Elias acted like it was something to worship. Which made her quite flustered, really. But he'd done so many things to make her blush before that now she was slowly developing an immunity. She'd get used to this type of thing eventually. For now, she still had the butterflies and redness that climbed up her chest and onto her cheeks.

"Do you..." She cleared her throat. "Do you ever wish you had hair, Elias?"

"No." He shook his skull. "On the head, at least. It'd be impossible to have it on a skull like mine. I suppose the closest I have is feathers."

The redhead blinked, suddenly remembering about his "true" form. The one she saw long ago when he nearly battled Cartaphilius. It'd been so long since she had to think about that. In fact, she nearly forgot about it. She was so used to seeing him in this certain form that sometimes she forgot. She suddenly remembered about his other ones and turned to him rather eagerly.

"Do you mind the blonde hair on your _human_ form, then?"

Elias paused and debated the idea. "Well...you said it was creepy, so I suppose so. I figured humans are regularly seen with hair, so I just based mine off of Simon's."

Chise gently nudged him. "Aw, I take that back. That was when I didn't really know you, Elias. So you were just creepy all the time, I guess."

He huffed. "Is that the reason why?"

"Yeah. Now it...it looks really handsome on you." She blushed. "Your bangs are my favorite part, I'd say."

"Oh, really?"

He suddenly switched into said human form right in front of her eyes. It made her mouth go into an "O" shape as she saw his skull morph into a human face and the rest of his body follow through. There wasn't a typical "magic" vibe to it, either. He just...morphed straight into it. It didn't unsettle her, but it was quite the sight having to witness it _now_ and _in front of her_.

The now human-Elias realized her surprised expression and frowned. "Sorry, I should have told you I was going to-"

His eyes widened as he felt her learn forward in his lap and turn around. She suddenly reached out to him and started feeling his hair. She was doing it much like he had done with her for this past hour or so. Trailing her hand on its surface...gently tugging at the ends...and especially running her hand through the strands.

Chise had a bit more trouble, though. The bangs were gelled and some of his hair felt a bit rough. She didn't quite know what to expect. But it was still wonderful to feel. She kept tugging at his bangs and trying to flatten them out with the rest of the hair. It naturally stayed separated and a bit bouncy in the air. The redhead smiled and gently tugged at it again.

Elias gave her an amused smile. "Having fun?"

"What?" She asked innocently. "Your hair feels nice, too. I usually can't reach it because of our height difference..."

She leaned forward and placed a kiss on his forehead, using her hand to feel the back of his head. Elias placed a hand on her back as she leaned forward to do so. Her chest was right in front of his sight, and he was doing his best to try and look at her face. She soon rested her chin on his hairline and gently sniffed the top of his hair.

"I didn't know you used shampoo..."

He closed his eyes. "That's rather offensive. Just because I'm not human doesn't mean I don't clean myself."

"You usually smell good no matter what form you're in." She admitted with a blush. "This smells...really amazing."

She leaned forward and sniffed again, using her hands to smooth out his hair while she did so. Elias relaxed in the chair as let her do whatever she pleased. She seemed to be having fun, and he couldn't blame her. He felt entranced playing with her hair...he could only imagine it'd be the same for her. And he knew she was enjoying herself, because the moment he peeked up, he found a bright smile on her lips.

"Did you copy Simon's lushness?" She teased.

"I'll have you know there are differences between our hair." Elias remarked. "I simply thought blonde was a nice color, is all."

Chise giggled. She yelped a bit when she suddenly felt the magus pull her downwards. She was now face-to-face with him and was staring at his hazel eyes. She couldn't help but go a little warm at this appearance. She knew he wasn't truly human - but it was quite the facade. His strong jawline and masculine features really showed to her now. Maybe it was because of how involved they were with each other...

The redhead closed her eyes and leaned forward to lock her lips with his. Elias didn't hesitated to kiss her back. He rested a gloved hand on the back of her head while they kissed. She felt his fingers play with her stands during their kiss. Chise decided to play with his, too. They both broke the kiss to smile for a moment, and locked them once more a moment after. The two of them continued to feel the softness of each other's hair while they kissed.

For how long, they didn't know.


	22. Schedule

There seemed to be a preceding schedule between Elias and Chise.

There was, of course, separate time for the young girl to study and hours that belonged for her own personal time. The same could be said about Elias, even though he spent most of his evenings cooped up around the house or in his own room. They shared specific times together on a daily basis - with Chise's lectures, their visits to the store or in the general public, or even the nights that they spent together sleeping in the same bed. But there was one small predicament coming with this antecedent schedule of theirs:

Cuddling.

Chise would have never imagined that she'd be spending hours cuddling with Elias. It was something that merely grew over time, what started as a one-time thing to something they now did quite often. It wasn't a day-to-day basis type of thing, more as a mere option of what to do whenever the two of them were alone. The redhead grew to cherishing these times the more they happened. She remembered feeling a bit uncomfortable and awkward the first time they laid together in bed and held one another, but now they were afternoons filled with nothing but pure bliss.

They happened to run into some free time after Chise's lesson for the day. She had returned her books to the shelves in her room and cleaned off her desk. Elias remained where he was; sitting on the chair that was next to the one she once occupied. He watched as she gathered the papers filled with her work and stacked them neatly, sliding them into one of the drawers in her desk.

He asked, "Do you have any plans for today?"

She looked at him and blinked, thinking if she did. "Well...I don't think so. Do you?"

"Nothing too important"

"Ah."

Chise looked around the room in search of her familiar, Ruth. But he was nowhere to be seen. He probably left in the midst of their lesson. He tended to grow bored with them, sometimes. The redhead smiled, a bit happy with his lack of company, and turned back to Elias and folded her hands behind her back. She took a slow step towards him, thinking how exactly to approach the topic.

"Elias..." She started, blush already growing on her cheeks. "Since there's nothing to do, would you like to-"

"Of course."

She blinked, green eyes lighting up in both excitement and confusion. "W-Wha-? You already knew what I was going to say?"

"Not necessarily." He cured his pupils. "I just enjoy doing anything with you, Chise. But I assume you wanted to do something in private?"

Her face grew a little redder. "Yeah, I think it'd be best if we were alone..."

She turned away from him and quickly shut her door. Her hand hovered over the knob for a moment in debate whether or not to lock it, but she judged against it and simply walked back over to him. She tried her best to avoid eye contact with him as she came behind Elias and rested her arms around his shoulders. She clasped her hands together at his chest and started to roll slightly on the heels of her sneakers.

The magus placed his own gloved hands on top of hers and gently rose his skull, being watchful of his horns. "My, aren't we shy today?"

Chise lowered her head, feeling even more embarrassed. It was as if he was oblivious as to what flustered her or what didn't.

"What was it you wanted to do?" He asked.

Her fingers grew numb and her voice squeaked. "I was wondering if we could cuddle for a bit?"

Elias opened his jaw to reply to her, but slowly shut it. Chise opened hers to withdraw the suggestion, but was suddenly taken aback when the magus stood up in his chair and rotated himself entirely so he was facing Chise. The redhead was suddenly taken in his arms and dragged over to her bed. He laid down on it, still propping himself up against the wall, and gently set his robin on top of him.

It took her a moment or two until she realized the position they were in. Nothing too different from their usual sessions, though now she felt a little unsettled. She carefully slipped off from his chest and came to his side, clinging onto his arm and bringing her body closer to his. The magus was surprised at this, and looked over at her with a lost expression on his skull.

"You usually like being on my chest."

She blushed. "It's...just the hot weather. I thought we could maybe do some side cuddling today?"

"Really?" He tilted his skull. "Demonstrate that to me."

The redhead looked away from him and back to his body. She hadn't even noticed that he removed his black vest during their lesson and he was only equipped with his usual white t-shirt he had on underneath. It complimented his frame really well, which made Chise get a bit shaky as she adjusted herself on his side. She rested her head on his chest and brought her leg up to rest near his crotch, laying her arm on his side and bringing him closer to her body.

Elias took a moment to feel this new position and rested his arm on her back. He said, "This is rather nice."

"Mhmm..." The redhead agreed, closing her eyes and listening to his heartbeat.

"I prefer you resting on my chest, however. But this will do."

Chise was already relishing the warmth from his figure. Her smile grew as his heartbeat slowed, and she unconsciously squeezed her body on his frame. This was really the most comfortable she had ever been - save for their previous sessions of cuddling. Elias was always so snug. She sometimes preferred sleeping on him than her own bed, sometimes. And that was saying a lot.

They remained like this for awhile, save for the occasional rubs from Elias and her snuggling even deeper on his side. It suddenly occurred to Chise that she forgot to ask him what exactly he _had_ planned for today, whether it was important or not. When she rose her head to ask him about it, the top of her auburn hair bumped against the bottom of his jaw.

The result was devastating.

She immediately sat up from the bed, not only giving Elias a new meaning of the word "cold", but she started grabbing at her head and groaning lowly. This concerned the magus right away, and he shot up faster than she'd ever _seen_. He leaned towards her and held his arms up around her sides, unsure exactly of what to do.

"Chise? Are you alright?" He asked, sounding panicked.

"Ow..." She muttered.

"I apologize." He motioned for her to come back. "Here, I'll rub your head better."

She shook her head, still clutching at the sensitive spot. She said, "Sometimes I forget how hard your bones can be, Elias..."

"Don't make me feel any worse than I already do."

"It _hurts_."

"I said I'll rub it. Come here, Chise."

"Can't I just get some ice? I think that'll help a lot better-"

The redhead had no time to protest as she was suddenly pulled back by Elias and placed on his shoulder. She gritted her teeth as the pain grew to a pounding sensation on the top of her head. It felt like an awful migraine - all from one accidental bump. She whined as she felt his gloved hand rub the top, for it did more pain than it did sooth it.

"Elias, it's not working." She complained. "Let me up-"

"No." He replied firmly.

His thumb started to rub in circles, which did nothing but worsen the pain. Chise opened her mouth to object again until something both cold and soft replaced his hand. She couldn't see or feel what he was using on her - but it felt a lot better. Like it was a soft pillow cushioning on her head. The pain was gone as soon as it came. Chise rubbed the spot and sat up on the bed, giving Elias a relieved smile.

"Wow," She said. "That really worked. What did you use?"

"A spell," He replied. "Its effects are much more productive than an ice pack."

"I can tell." She went forward to hug him. "Thank you..."

Elias wrapped his arms around her and squeezed lightly. He rubbed her back and lifted his arm to try and soothe the spot again. It actually felt really good this time, so Chise leaned into his touch and gently moaned at the massage. He withdrew his gloved hand to rest it back on her waist and stared at something from afar.

"Did it really hurt that much?" He asked. Chise could've sworn she heard a hint of guilt in his tone.

"Yeah, but you took care of it." She laid a kiss on his neck. "I guess we both tried to talk to each other at the same time."

"If my skull is an issue for you, Chise, then I can always-"

She leaned back and placed a hand on the end of his mouth. "No, no! I really love your skull...and you. It's not a problem. I've only bumped my head on it, like, 4 times now. Nothing too bad."

Chise could feel the sharp indents of his teeth in her palm, which made her shudder for only a moment. It still mesmerized her on how ferocious his features were meant to be. Yet the way he played off as a gentle and caring lover for her overshadowed those thoughts. He was never scary to her - only intimidating, sometimes. But she knew he'd never hurt her.

Elias sighed in relief. "That's good. I'm...glad that you accept me for who I am."

She went forward to nuzzle her nose on the side of his skull. "Well, you do it for me. And I'm sure I've hurt you before..."

"That's true. Not physically, however."

Chise bit her lip. "I'd rather not talk about that...can we go back to cuddling?"

"Are you afraid to live with guilt?" He suddenly asked. "I know I've pained you, Chise, and it hasn't left me."

"Sh-hh!" The redhead clung onto him. "Let's just keep cuddling. I think I'd like that a lot more than remembering about the past."

Elias grew quiet as she adjusted herself back on him, climbing on his chest and resting her body there. He placed an arm on her back and felt his body growing warmer from her presence. He looked down and admired the details of her figure from this angle. Her touch was always something he treasured. And she was right; what use would it be to mention the past at a time like _this_?

"I think we'll do that," He said, holding her closer to him.


	23. Dancing

The outfits mentioned in here are based on outfits made by deviantART user sherlmerl. Go check their page out and see it!

* * *

This was the second party Chise had ever attended.

She was older now to the point where people around her stopped looking at Chise as a child. Even though she was surrounded by creatures and people who were centuries years old, they still recognized the point to where humans matured. She was growing quickly through, and now people who once looked down at her would address her as a "young woman". Chise would blush and look away from them, having to get used to this title. It's been so long that people treated her as a young robin, after all.

Socializing at parties wasn't quite her forte. She was sometimes clumsy and awkward with her words. She still had her many friends to back her up, and Ruth would sometimes save her from embarrassment. But Chise was discouraged from speaking with anyone after accidentally tripping and knocking over some alcohol earlier in the party. Everyone forgave her - but the redhead wouldn't ever let the memory die. Not while it was still fresh.

The party she went to was for Angelica. She couldn't remember what exactly it was for now - the idea slipped her mind once she came over. She was too focused on trying not to make a fool of herself or saying the wrong this by this point. Ruth was aware of this and surfaced from her shadow, wearing an unusual suit to fit the formal wear of the party.

"It's not that hard, you know." He spoke beside her. "Just go up to someone and ask them how they are. They'll talk to you."

"I'd rather not." Chise hunched her shoulders up.

She wasn't used to feeling as bare as this in public. Her dress covered her chest area down to her lower thigh, but nothing more than that. Her hair was made especially for the party, Silky insisted on having it look more clean than how it looked usually. It was held together by a headband made with fake roses, which altogether complimented her red getup.

Ruth sighed and looked around the room. "I'll go ahead and do it for you. I'll walk up to that guy over there, introduce you to him, and then you can hit it off after."

He got up to head in the direction of a random person, as to which Chise grabbed his arm and shoved him back down in his chair. "Ruth, no!" She exclaimed. "If I want to talk to anybody, I'll do it myself."

"But you aren't?"

"I don't want to talk to anybody."

"You're such an introvert," He took a sip from a cup nearby. "I wish you'd be more open with people, sometimes."

Chise held the sides of her head and looked around. "Where's Elias?" She asked.

Ruth pointed over in a direction, and she followed his finger. Elias seemed to be the complete opposite of her. He was included in a group of people with a glass of alcohol in one if his gloved hands. He was socializing with Angelica's family, and they seemed to be laughing and smiling within his company. A good example of how much he progressed through the years from his previous isolating attitude.

Chise got up. "I think I'll go talk to him."

"Sure, talk to your _husband_ , of all people." She heard Ruth retort from behind her back. "Not all these other people you don't know. That's a great idea."

The redhead chose to ignore him, continuing on her way to Elias' tall frame. She hesitated before sliding her hand through the gap between his body and his arm, grasping at it and squeezing very lightly. The man looked down in surprise before recognizing Chise, and he motioned her forward to the people in front of them.

"Ah, there she is." Angelica commented with a wink. "Right when we were talking about you!"

The redhead flushed at the center of attention. She went forward to shake hands with the people she didn't know, and they gave her a brief introduction of names. Ones she'd try her best to remember. There were still so many people and fae she had met in her life. Chise watched as Hugo rounded her and giggled in her air before disappearing back to Angelica's side.

"Hi, how's everybody doing..." She murmured. Everyone exchanged a round of chuckles, which made Chise turn ever redder.

"We're doing fine so far," Angelica replied. "Still working on the alcohol, of course. Do you know how much it takes for this bonehead here to get _drunk_? Even I don't know how many."

Elias' orbs scanned Angelica for a moment before going down to look at Chise. He could tell she was embarrassed. He know knew when to recognize the signs of when she was feeling good or bad. And he knew being embarrassed was a bad thing, so he was going to do his best to excuse the both of them soon.

"How are _you_ doing, Chise?" David took a sip of his beer. "I don't think anyone's asked you yet."

"I'm okay." She answered, unknowingly tugging at Elias' sleeve. "Thanks for asking."

The magus finally took the hint and rose his arm down so he could clutch at Chise's hand. He turned them both away from the group, then looked back at Angelica and said, "I think Chise and I will head outside just for a tad bit."

"Mkay, but no funny business, Ainsworth!" She glared at him. "I still don't trust you."

"We've been married for many years now, Angelica."

"No funny business!"

Elias ignored her as he led himself and Chise outside. She was thankful he took the lead, as she had little idea how Angelica's home worked. She'd only been here sparingly. And it had been an awful long time since she first encountered her. And Elias' human facade, nonetheless. She felt her heart beat a bit faster at those memories. Her mind suddenly went back to remembering how meeting Elias changed her life, and how falling in love with him made it even better.

The two were soon completely outside, facing the full moon and the dark sky filled with stars. There was nothing but the sound of crickets and the voices heard inside. Elias brought her a bit further from the garden and the two of them soon rested at a gazebo nearby. Chise sighed in relief as she perched herself on the bench and relaxed.

"Thanks, Elias." She lowered her head. "I really wanted to leave."

"Why didn't you?" He asked, carefully setting his glass to the side.

Chise thought of an excuse. "Ruth wanted me to stay."

"I highly doubt that."

"...I wanted to be with you?"

It wasn't entirely a lie. Chise was honestly missing his company back at that party. He would've helped her more than Ruth did trying to get her "out there". Not to mention that they were married, and she tended to miss him the longer he was gone. Being separated from him at a party, enduring meeting all these new people...just overwhelmed her.

The redhead looked over at him and admired the sight. He was wearing a suit that was special for the occasion. He wore a black tuxedo with a lighter-shaded vest underneath as well as a red t-shirt and black tie. He was also wearing the most flattering pair of pants she'd ever witnessed, as well as a dark-red belt that was completed with black gloves.

Needless to say, he looked _delectable_.

Elias chuckled. " _That_ I can believe, just a tad bit more."

Chise scooted closer to him on the bench and rested her head on the side of his arm. She felt it come up to wrap around her shoulders, gently placing it on his chest. His arm was then placed on her shoulder, and Chise took this advantage to wrap her arms around hm and give Elias a squeeze. The smell of his cologne was indescribable - and she _loved_ it.

"Is there something bothering you?" He asked.

The redhead bit her lip, debating on telling him or not. They _were_ alone. It wouldn't hurt anything to just admit it to him. She rolled her head so she was looking at the ground, and started clinging onto his arm again and rubbing the sleeve softly.

"I'm no good at parties," She confessed. Elias snorted.

"I can tell. You stayed in the corner for nearly the entire time."

"I tripped! And I almost spilled alcohol on myself!"

"Everyone forgot about it," He assured.

She went quiet. Elias leaned forward to try and get a peek at her face, but couldn't. He only had himself to blame for bringing up her shyness. She'd climbed plenty out of her shell before. Perhaps it was just the setting of parties that upset her. She did very well on her own any other time. He was still confused on why she would feel bashful around the people she'd known for awhile now.

"How are you so good at them?" She suddenly asked.

"At what?" He inquired.

"Parties. How do you...go around talking to people and drinking?" She scrunched her nose. "I'm having a hard time doing that. M-Minus the drinking part, for a bit."

Elias laid a gloved hand on the side of her face, gently stroking her cheek. He replied, "I simply do it. I've been around long enough to get used to socializing. Meeting people is as natural for me as it is walking."

She huffed. "I wish I felt like that."

"You can. You simply need practice."

Chise huffed. She wished he understood. He came to terms about knowing a lot of things about her, but it was still a few things he was still blind on. He was experienced - she was _not_. It wasn't easy for her to just go to parties and start talking with people. She never really fancied them if they weren't for her. Parties were something new altogether.

"What are we celebrating, anyway?" She asked.

"Angelica's anniversary," He replied. Chise widened her eyes in surprise.

"Really?" She asked, then looked around awestruck. "Wow...I thought...Actually, I didn't even think it was _anything._ "

"You just had to ask," Elias pointed out. She, once again, huffed. She still acted so childish, even if she was growing quite quickly. The magus took her stubbornness as an advantage to start lecturing her.

"I think you forget that you're the one who helped me." He pointed out. Chise blinked and looked up at him.

"Huh?"

"You were the one who helped me open up to people," He clarified. "Before you, not many people liked me. I kept to myself most of the time. Ever since you've been around, Chise, I've been doing a lot better. Everyone seems to tolerate me nowadays."

Chise smiled, suddenly remembering those hostile times. Angelica still called him names, but she tolerated him a lot better after they had that human wedding. Everyone came up to him now, all because they befriended Chise. They probably wanted to know more about the man she grew to love. The redhead couldn't blame them - Elias was one-of-a-kind. The only _of_ his kind, actually.

"Oh, yeah..." She commented. "Seems like so long ago you barely talked to anybody."

Elias said nothing, urging Chise to peek over at him. He was busy admiring the details of her eyes. The way the green glistened from the moon...and her alluring getup. He hadn't seen her this dressed since their wedding. She had been the most beautiful that day, but he'd say today came as a very close second.

The magus suddenly got up and offered his gloved hand to her. He asked, "Would you care to dance?"

"Dance?" Chise repeated. "Really?"

"Yes. There's enough room."

"O-Okay, but..." She took his hand, letting him motion her to her feet. "Why do you want to? It's so sudden, and-"

"-No one will see us here." Elias explained. "We're outside. They're inside. This will be more of a personal time between us, Chise."

He gently dragged her over to the middle of the gazebo, placing themselves in a traditional foxtrot. Nothing too hard for either of them - it proved to be an easy dance with such a height difference. Sometimes Elias forgot that she only came just to his abdomen. Even through the years of her growing, he still managed to be taller than her. Which was quite a good thing because he towered over every single human he had ever encountered.

Their dance was quiet and slow. Eventually, they quickened their pace. Chise loved clutching at his hands, and he'd squeeze hers back if she ever did so to him. A smile grew on her lips as Elias twirled her around, and she was back at his side in an instant. She couldn't help but laugh in delight and continue dancing with him. The crickets in the background were now their music, and the moon was their spotlight.

"This reminds me of how we danced at our wedding," She brought up.

"Yes, I believe we did something similar to this." He nodded. "Maybe the sway. I don't really remember."

"Me either."

He dipped Chise gently, and the redhead looked back at the house. She was so thankful she was out _here_ and not in _there_. She could only imagine what dancing in there would be like. Probably crowded and hunched up, she'd assume. She wouldn't want to dance with anyone else besides Elias, of course. And she wouldn't know how to feel if he chose anyone else.

He brought her back up, and the redhead went to wrap her arms around him and rested her head against his neck. She laid a kiss on its surface, and went up to grab the end of his skull and kissed him there, too. Elias laid a glove hand on the back of her head as he nuzzled her bare arm. She felt herself get goosebumps.

"I-I love you, Elias..." She said, nuzzling him once more.

He removed her only to twirl her again. He replied, "I love you too, Chise."


	24. Period

It was the middle of the night when Elias awoke to a curious smell. A very familiar scent that had been lingering around the bridge of his nose. It drove him out of his sleep-like state as he sat up straight in his bed and tilted his skull upwards curiously. All he could see were the dim lights coming through his bedroom window, leaving various strands onto the carpet below. The magus cautiously removed himself from his blankets as he started to follow the source of the smell.

It was sort of a canine instinct, he realized. Anyone would've been upset or curious with a new scent - especially during odd circumstances like midnight. But Elias found some sort of...longing deriving from his chest. One that gave him the urge to fluff out his feathers and succumb to his mad-nature state. A feeling he had to fight tremendously as he started to get closer to the source, and at the point where he realized it was coming from Chise's room was when he had to physically hold himself down.

He gently turned the doorknob and pushed the door open with the tip of his finger. It let out an audible creak, and the magus froze in place. He heard silence come afterwards, and he slowly peeked inside the room and scanned around with his red orbs. He found nothing out of the ordinary - Chise fast asleep in her bed, and Ruth snoring nearby her feet.

Elias was about to return to his room until the scent came again. The same smell that was constantly awaking the feral side of his nature. He placed a hand on the top of his skull as he went back into the room, and didn't bother making himself quiet as he stopped and lifted his snout in the air. He took a deep breath - and it was _then_ that he recognized what exactly he had been smelling.

Blood.

Ruth rose from his sleep and opened his eyes. His sight eventually traveled over to Elias, and the black grim perked up. He opened his muzzle to ask why the magus had even been in the room, but he caught the scent immediately. He lifted his snout and took a breath like Elias had, except his nose went in the direction of Chise. Elias saw this and quickly went to her side, placing a hand on her back.

"Is she okay?" He asks softly, noting how warm her skin was.

"I don't know," Ruth replies, slowly standing up on the bed. "I caught it now, too."

"The blood?" Elias asks. The dog nods and the magus looks back at Chise worriedly. "Is she hurt? Do you think she needs attention?"

"I-"

 _"E...lias?_ "

Both of the males froze as the redhead stirred from her sleep. She rolled over and gently opened her eyes, blinking them until they adjusted to the soft moonlight spread over the figure of her bed. Her green eyes landed on the two creatures looking at her worriedly, both of their red eyes glowing in the darkness. She felt herself jump for a second, but noticed Elias' hand hovering in the air and relaxed.

"What are you doing here, Elias?" She asks, holding a hand up to rub her eye.

"Chise, are you feeling alright?"

The teenager tilted her head and frowned. He completely avoided her question. She took a moment to adjust, and found that something actually _was_ stirring in her stomach. A pain that suddenly worsened once Elias mentioned it. She went forward and wrapped her arms around her own frame, squeezing her stomach gently to try and numb down the pain. Ruth took a step forward on the bed and sniffed her head.

"It's coming from her," He confirmed.

"Ow..." Chise gritted her teeth. "Did you guys do something?"

She looked between the two quickly. It really was silly to assume that either of them would do something to harm her. She doubted what she said as Elias took a step forward and placed the back of his hand on her forehead. It was bare, and she felt the scales gently rub against her skin as he withdrew it. He let out a breath as he looked down at her.

"You're warm," He comments. "I'm sorry for waking you - I just caught a scent, and...I was wondering if you were hurt."

"Hurt?" She echoes. "Yeah, I do, but I felt fine in my sleep... _ah!_ "

Another sharp pain came from the side of her stomach, and Chise squeezed her legs together. Elias and Ruth shared worried looks as they went closer to her. The teenager held up a hand to stop them and slowly removed herself from the bed, shakily placing her legs on the hardwood floor. It felt really cold, but every other part of her body was heating up.

She winced as she placed a hand on her stomach. "I'll be right back."

"Chise?" Ruth stood attentively in her spot. "Where are you going?"

She left both of them unanswered as she disappeared into the hallway. The two of them stayed in her room for a few seconds, both hesitant on the idea of following her. After getting a nod of approval from Ruth, both him and Elias quietly followed the scent until they found a bright light coming from a door on the end of the hall.

The redhead spent longer than usual in the bathroom. That was thanks to nature - but not as regular. She realized that her body had been due for its monthly drain, and she grabbed one of the tampons from under the sink before cleaning herself and situating. It was all extremely embarrassing to her, especially the fact that both her familiar and her husband figured it out before her.

She came out of the bathroom blushing at these thoughts, and found the two of them waiting out in the hall. Ruth had been sitting on all fours while Elias rested against the wall. Once they found Chise coming out from the bathroom, they hurriedly went to her. She had to take a step back in surprise.

"Chise! Were you okay?" Ruth asks first. "You took awhile in there."

"Yeah, Ruth, I'm fine..." She rubbed the side of her arm. "I think I'm going back to bed, though."

She passed by both of them and went back to her room quietly. Ruth followed after and Elias did as well, though a bit more slower. He went to ask Chise what had happened, but found her bedroom door shut before he had the chance. The magus dragged himself back into his room and shut his own door quietly. He didn't spend the rest of that night sleeping - rather, thinking about what had happened.

* * *

The night soon escalated into morning, and Chise was up and ready. She seemed to have been really energetic the first hour she woke up. Elias heard her taking a shower(even singing a sweet melody he'd admitted to listening to), and she dressed herself up in her usual springy outfits. She ate breakfast well and smiled as usual, though she quiet about the matters that had happened overnight. He brought it up once or twice, but she'd blush and simply change the topic.

A few hours ensued after, and Elias found her on her bed clutching at her stomach again. Ruth was by her side as always, resting his muzzle on the top of her leg. She kept gritting her teeth, and the closer he went, he saw a few tears falling from her eyes and onto the pillow. He came to her worriedly and sat by her figure on the edge of her bed.

"I know I've asked before but now I want an answer." He started. "Are you alright?"

The redhead opened her eyes and glanced over to him. She didn't say a word as she slowly flipped herself over, and kept clutching at her abdomen area. Ruth got up and quietly jumped off the bed. To give the two of them more room. He assumed Elias would be joining her and comforting her as he always did. The magus gave him a nod of thanks as she leaned over the bed and gently rested a hand on her shoulder.

"Chise?" He asked.

"El..lias..." She hesitated. He tilted his skull and waited for her continue, but she didn't.

"I'm worried," He said. "You aren't talking to me about this, and I can tell you are in pain. I can still smell the blood. Where is it coming from?"

The blush on her face grew even more. Her heart thudded against her ribs rapidly. Her eyes traveled over in his direction but stopped before she could see him. She removed her hands from her body and grabbed at the pillow, sliding it over so she could rest her head on it. She sniffled and wiped the tears from her eye.

"I'm not," She confessed. "But it's normal."

"Normal to bleed?" He inquired.

It occurred to Chise that Elias may not have known what a 'period' was. It made a lot of sense that he didn't, figuring that he had been alone for awhile before she came along. She wasn't sure if brownies like Silky could endure them or if Elias would have sensed it at all. She slowly turned to her husband and tried to work her words carefully. She didn't want to stir anything unnecessary.

"Y-Yes. For girls, though."

The magus tilted his skull curiously. "I have never sensed blood among the females I've known unless they were in danger."

She cringed. "It's different for humans...it's a human thing."

"Enlighten me, then. You _are_ my human teacher, are you not?"

Chise took a shaky breath and gulped. She finally turned to get a good look at him. Elias was now sitting closer on her bed with his legs crossed, and he was leaning forward looking at her curiously. He had obviously left his robe somewhere in the house, and was dressed in his usual vest and pants. Something ushered her to just go and come in his lap, but she had to remain where she was not to invoke anymore pain on herself.

"Elias...do you know what periods are?" She finally asked.

"I'm afraid I don't," He replied.

The redhead shuffled around where she was, feeling extremely shy with the topic. "H..hasn't Silky told you about it before?"

"She seldom talks to me."

There was another round of silence besides the sound of birds chirping just outside the window. Chise turned herself until she was laying straight on the bed. Elias was still eying her figure curiously. She really didn't want to get up, so the redhead decided to just look at him and explain it from where she was.

"Periods happen at the end of the month, f-for human females..." She felt herself get red. "It's usually a week where they bleed a-and they can't control it..."

"What's the bleeding for?"

"To get rid of old blood," She answered. "If we aren't pregnant, then it replaces itself. It's a good thing, but it results in..a lot of... _pain_..."

As if her body understood the demonstration, it suddenly started aching again. She clutched at her stomach again and saw Elias head towards her in concern. She shook her head to warn him not to pick her up like he usually would. The magus hesitated as he stared down at her. She could tell that he was concerned by the look in his eye.

"What kind of pain?" He asks.

"Cramps and aches...and sometimes we get cravings for chocolate. It's just a really painful time of the month."

Elias situated himself closer to her. "What can I do to help? It'll pain me to witness you like this any longer if I can't do anything about it."

Chise couldn't help but smile at his worry. It really touched her that the people around her in her life now cared so much. Silky always left her a bar of chocolate on her nightstand whenever it was her time, and she made sure there was a box available for her when she needed it. Ruth was always by her side comforting her through the cramps. Elias' help would just be the cherry on top, she figured.

"Well...there's nothing you can do directly, but...I find that stomach rubs always helps me."

He seemed contented with this task, as Elias didn't ask anymore questions as he laid beside her and turned to rest his large hand on her small stomach. He didn't need to move it much to rub it. But as his hand softly worked its way on her bare skin, Chise felt the pains slowly subdue. They were still there, but the aches and cramps went down a lot. It was the most soothing gesture she had felt in the longest time.

"Is there anything else I can do?" He asked.

Chise scooted closer to him and rested her head on the side of his shoulder. He inhaled his scent and smiled as she exhaled. She had no idea how it must've been for him - he was probably still smelling the blood. But his company was all she needed to help her feel better. The belly rubs just happened to help soothe her physically.

"Just you laying here with me helps," She said. "I just need you, I guess. You help me a lot through the pain."

"Likewise. If there's anything you ever need, Chise, please don't hesitate to tell me. It _is_ my job to take care of you now, as your husband and all."

She felt her heart flutter at the term. It always felt nice to be reminded of the fact that he was her _husband_. Apart of her dreamed that the guy she'd end up with would take care of her during this time. She's had to endure it alone for so long that she felt no one close to her ever would. But she really shouldn't have doubted it with Elias. He'd risk so much for her, after all.

"I won't," She replied, leaving a kiss on the side of his jaw.

Elias nuzzled the side of her face back as he resumed rubbing the surface of her stomach. They laid like that for a few minutes, only listening to the nature outside and the sound of each other's breaths. It felt so relaxing to Chise that she almost forgot all about the pains she had endured before. Elias' touch always gave her butterflies that she would never get tired of feeling.

A thought suddenly occurred to her. "Elias?"

"Yes?"

"If...you can smell the blood..." Chise flushed in embarrassment. "D-Does that mean you...want to _eat_ me?"

"That's..." Elias' voice trailed off. His orbs trailed over to her and noticed the hesitant look on her face. "I'd never do that, Chise."

"But does it give you the _urge_? I mean, you almost did that one time...a-and I know I shouldn't mention it, but-"

"-I will never _eat_ you." He repeated firmly. "You're mine, but not to consume. I...love you. And even if I get the instinct to do so, I'd never act on it. I have enough self control."

She rested her head in the crook of his neck. "I love you, too, Elias. Thank you for not acting on it...I guess it must feel weird for you and all."

"Of course not." He stopped rubbing her stomach. "Just because you _can_ eat something doesn't mean you _will_. It's all about morals - and my kind don't feast on those they love. You're my everything, Chise, and getting rid of you in any way possible would devastate me."

She could hear her heartbeat beating in her ears. She took a breath as she slowly climbed more onto Elias. He took this hint and situated the two of them into their usual cuddling position. He leaned back against the headrest of the bed to give her room to lay down, and Chise nuzzled herself on him. His warmth wasn't unpleasant at all, and his touch was its usual softness.

Her heart thudded faster as she grazed her cheek on his vest. Elias rested his arm on her back and started rubbing it. The gesture relaxed her as well as her pains. She practically melted into their contact as she rested on his chest, and closed her eyes to listen to the silence of the room. She unconsciously found herself falling asleep on him, eyes threatening to close any second.

It really was ridiculous to think he'd eat her now. She had no doubt that, if she _were_ to rest on him..she'd wake back up in half an hour. She rid all the doubts she previously had and metaphorically threw them out a window. He would **never** do that. He loves her.

"I..." She breathed on him, slowly closing her eyes. "I trust you, Elias."

"You should," He replied.

That was the last thing she heard before falling asleep. Her nap on him had been one of the best she'd taken in her life. And she woke up an hour later resting back on the pillow tucked under the sheets carefully. She fluttered her eyes open and looked around for Elias. She found that he had left sometime during her nap. She soon rose from the blankets and tugged them off from her body, suddenly noticing the lack of pain in her abdomen.

It was then that she realized how much self control he truly has.


	25. Promise

She was growing up.

This fact wouldn't have ever come to her in the past. All her life, Chise had been so involved with her past to where she grew blind to her future. She wouldn't have ever imagined ending up where she was now. She was certain that, by this point, she would've been far long gone and merely left as a faint memory among those who remembered her. She thought she'd die young, not only because of her curse, but from the many people out there who wished nothing but harm for her.

She was 18 now.

Elias had done many good and bad things. She remembered them well, though she chose to keep the good ones close to her heart. He changed her life buying her from the auction that day. The position she put herself hadn't been taken advantage of, and it was only because of Elias' care for her had she been able to come this far. He treated her like she was everything to him, and Chise was thoroughly convinced that was true. She felt the same way about him.

But it was only _now_ she started getting new thoughts. Ones that intruded the purity of her brain. Thoughts that kept her up at night and warm underneath her sheets. Images in her mind that seemed to be permanently glued into her skull; never to leave her eyes the moment she imagined them. She knew very well who was on her mind all the time. Ruth did as well.

It was Elias.

Chise always thought about him. Not out of an obsession or incessant love. She wouldn't doubt those past feelings. But the way she thought about him now was...different. She thought about certain parts of him - physically - that one didn't matter to her. She had the image of them stuck in her mind, and she now found her once peaceful mind now torn to pieces at these invading thoughts. They were all unconscious and completely out from her grasp. They'd come to her at times she didn't want them to. And that included her exhausted nights where she was kept up by these impure thoughts and scenarios she imagined.

She always wondered about Elias' form. Not the ones he'd taken to situate to the world or disguise himself among the humans...the one he was gifted with from birth. The tall, unsettling creature that towered over her many years ago...the incomprehensible body structure and overwhelming stature of what Elias was truly meant to be. She wondered if he'd have ever resulted to that form again...if he'd ever use it in proof of his raw self or when he succumbed to his desires. Her thoughts wandered around that the most.

She was tainted with these impurities. These questions that left her longing for Elias in ways she had never known before. An attraction that was entirely new to her...a feeling that made her have the most pressured dream of her life. A night filled with sweat, concentration, and hot air. The only time she ever had to escort Ruth out from her room in the midst of her ponders. A night that, ultimately, wouldn't leave her mind for the rest of her existence.

* * *

It was during tea time that Chise decided to bring the matter up. She and Elias had been drinking their usual share of Silky's brews that she made every day. Chise enjoyed the coldness of her own tea while Elias preferred his hot. She set down her cup easily on the plate while Elias carefully hovered his own over the same one. He set it down with caution, and continued to read from the book held in his hand. She had no idea if he was too preoccupied to notice, but during their whole session, the redhead had been a bit antsier than normal.

No, that was an understatement. She was _anxious_. She was feeling these emotions again that prodded her to squeeze her thighs together and close her eyes to take a moment and rid them. The thoughts that haunted her last night were back again, and left a warm redness on her face that refused to leave. She took a long time shuffling in her seat and constantly readjusting herself, using the cool air of the afternoon around them to try and cool her skin. To remove the blush she wore for an hour now before Elias could notice it.

There was a question that was threatening to leave her lips. It was about what she wanted to discuss with him earlier...but this question was a lot more specific. It became the basis of these thoughts - as if the restlessness caused by them wouldn't cease until she had the answer. She found it incredibly important to know, even though it was probably more trivial than anything.

She looked to the table and gulped quietly. "Elias..." She started.

His eyes passed over to hers, gently lifting up his cup and drinking its content while he responded. "Yes?"

Chise had meant to take a moment and pause. She wanted to pretend that the next question she'd ask was suddenly new to her; that it hadn't been bugging her for what felt like ages now. She had hoped to portray some sort of uncertainty so the question would have felt more real - but she tragically blurted it aloud, instead.

"Are you a virgin?"

Elias' initial reaction wasn't what she expected. He managed to spit whatever tea had entered his mouth in surprise. He jumped from his seat and knocked his cup over, which in result spilled in his lap and left a stain near his crotch. He made a pained noise and quickly removed the cup, setting it back on the table and reaching for some napkins in defeat. Chise got up from her chair to help him, but he quickly held his other hand to stop her.

"No, I've...I've got it." He insisted. She could hear him scrubbing it off with the napkin. The redhead slowly sat back in her seat and sat there quietly while she listened to him cleaning himself. When he was done, the two of them remained where they were in silence while Elias took the time to have the rest of the tea cool down on his pants.

He leaned forward and gazed at Chise intently. She could hear the apprehension in his voice when he asked, "What brought this up, Chise?"

"Well..." She hesitated. Would it be appropriate to tell him? She wasn't quite sure. "It's...just been on my mind for awhile now. A dream that kind of made me want to ask you."

"A dream?" He repeated. "Was it recent?"

"Yeah. It was. I had it...last night..." She mumbled the last part.

"Do you remember what happened in it?"

The redhead furrowed her eyebrows at the memory. She felt her body get hot again just thinking about it. Recollecting all the events that had happened...the emotions she believed to have experienced, and the ungodly things that happened in it...she remembered them all very well. In good detail, actually. But she grew extremely nervous at the thought of telling him about it. To admit that **_he_** was the one with her during the whole dream - taking her in ways she could only imagine and think about. Chise bit her lip and shook her head.

"No, never mind...It's just...never mind."

He noticed her change of tone and worriedly sat forward. "Is something wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing." She looked away from him. "Can you call Silky? I want some more tea."

He stared at her for awhile before slowly nodding, and moving his skull to call for the brownie. She came and soon retrieved their cups, taking it back in the kitchen to pour another serving of tea. The two of them were quiet in the absence of their beverages, and as soon as they were back, the rest of the afternoon was completely silent and distant for both of them.

* * *

He didn't want this.

Whatever it was bothering Chise, it bothered Elias, too. Her whole demeanor changed whenever she was upset. The way she acted, the things she'd say, and even the responses the magus got from Ruth followed the same pattern. He felt like the outcast whenever something was troubling Chise. She refused to tell him about these things and would often leave Elias to try and figure it out for himself. He wasn't a very good guesser, he learned...he often resulted to the worst of possibilities. Which made him often overthink or overreact with these types of situations.

Least to say, he was conflicted that rest of that day. He tried his best not to talk to Chise too much or too little - interacting with her whenever it was necessary or when she engaged it. He was afraid to upset his wife again. The past experiences he had with a distant Chise never ended too well. And it ultimately came to them preparing for bed that they finally had the chance to talk about it. Elias realized trying to avoid the issue wasn't going to help anything - so he planned on asking her about it the moment they were underneath the covers together.

When Elias changed into his pajamas and slipped into the blankets to sit and wait for Chise, he remembered what happened the other night. How she had left him in the midst of his sleep to retreat back to her room. He didn't quite remember why...or if she ever told him the reason of doing so. But what he remembered was that things became extremely cold the moment she left. Both physically and mentally. He didn't sleep very well the rest of that night. He had no idea if he had done something to upset her or cause her to leave.

Elias hoped tonight wouldn't be the same.

She soon came into the room a bit later, dressed in a transparent nightgown that left her thin figure a tad visible underneath the pink layers. She said nothing to him as she slipped in the blankets and laid down. He listened as she situated herself and gently rested her head on the pillow, facing the opposite direction of him. He turned his skull and watched her intently, and only removed his eyes the moment she glanced back at him.

"...Yes." He said softly.

Chise looked back at him in confusion. "...Yes to what, Elias?" She asked.

"I _am_ a virgin." He clarified. "I apologize that my answer was so late."

He noticed then the blush that grew on her cheeks. He knew right away that **_that_** was what bugged her - what had been on her mind this whole time. He hadn't meant to guess the topic so easily on the first try...but at least it was better than playing the "guessing game". He didn't quite favor that method.

The redhead slowly sat up and gently wrapped the blankets around her lap. She looked at him slowly before turning away and hiding her face with her hand. She really was acting bashful now, presumably nervous, maybe. But she wasn't wearing a smile like she usually was whenever she was flustered. She looked like the topic was truly problematic, as if it was bugging her the longer it was on her mind.

"I'm sorry," She apologized. "It's just...I wasn't expecting that answer."

"Did you think I wasn't?" He asked.

"Well, yes." She blinked once or twice. "You've been here longer than I have...centuries, even. I assumed that you'd have...in that time...you know..."

"Just because I've been here for long doesn't mean I've done everything," He explained. "There are plenty of things I haven't done. I mostly fended for myself before you came along. I found no need to try and reproduce - there was no one within my interest around. I was still isolated from humanity, Chise."

Her green eyes glowed softly, making Elias' chest twinge. "...Not even with a creature?" She asked. "Like fae?"

"No. Not even _them_. I was truly alone, I think." He rested his skull in his hand and started studying the walls. "There was no one willing to have relations with a monster - nevertheless _love_ them."

She went quiet at this confession. Elias really didn't understand why. He assumed that she was still informed about how...empty his life had been. He hadn't realized it until his life got better with Chise by his side. He'd been extremely unhappy and alone before her. The assumption that he had sex with anyone really was without consideration - there wasn't anyone generous enough to give a creature like him the opportunity. And if they _had_ , he would've declined it, anyway.

"...I'm a virgin, too..." Chise admitted.

"I wouldn't have expected differently," He looked at her. "You were young before I met you. And even afterwards, I wouldn't deem it possible. Unless you were...disloyal, or something of the sort."

She waved her hands and shook her head. "-Of course not! I've always been promised to you, Elias. I wouldn't have let anyone taken that advantage of me."

"Neither would I," He agreed.

"I...I just ask b-because..." The blush grew back on her face. She nervously looked away in hopes that he hadn't seen it - even though he had. "I've been thinking about you a lot lately. But differently than I used to...this time, I've been thinking about...well, _those_ things. If you know what I mean."

He did understand this. The notion both flattered and confused him. He reached to motion her head back in his direction and laid his hand gently underneath her chin. Chise was looking at him in awe. It was new to him to see her face so red...he understood why, however.

"I do," He insisted. "But how do you _think_ of me? Like that? I'm very deceiving, Chise. The way you may have portrayed me in that dream, or those thoughts of yours, really wouldn't have been _me_."

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I am only partially how I appear to you now," He clarified. "And I am only an ounce of what is within my human facade. What I really am, Chise - I am that monster you witnessed long ago. I am that creature every fae and human fear. I'm incapable of doing things similar to how you humans do it."

She flushed. "I had...other thoughts that...weren't really human-oriented, either..."

This bit intrigued him. A bit more than he would've liked. He leaned close to her and asked, "Have you, now?"

His hand traveled along her jawline, and rested at the side of her face. He cupped it within his palm and started to gently graze the side of her cheek with his thumb repeatedly, rubbing the surface as she continued to look in his orbs. He was busy studying the details of her eyes - now realizing that the purity they once held were faint. They were still existent, yes, but...not as they were before. Chise gulped heavily and nodded.

"Yeah...and it's only with you. I never think about these things with anyone else. Not even humans. It's really only you, Elias. I love you so much. I can't imagine myself ever...well-"

"I understand what you're saying." He interrupted. "And I love you, too, Chise. I'm happy that I'm inclusive in these thoughts of yours. Even though it'd be much more practical for you to have them with anyone else."

She held onto the side of his arm and slightly whined. "I don't love anyone besides you. It wouldn't be right."

"You humans have quite the connection of love and reproduction." He tilted his skull. "I find it very meaningful. It only proves the loyalty among you with your mates. The ones you love. It is much more fair than in the other species I have seen."

She frowned and looked at the floor. Her eyes slowly traveled back to him as she asked, "Elias...does your species reproduce with love? O-Or do you just do it to...have your own?"

He cupped both sides of her face, and brought the end of his skull to graze her lips gently. Chise closed her eyes while he did this and gently kissed the surface of his teeth. She was a ball of absolute heat. He could tell she was physically feeling what was on her mind now - and he was only encouraging it with this talk. Her cheeks grew warmer the longer his hands prolonged their stay, and he soon withdrew his head so he could look at her.

"I've told you before that we stick with one mate," He answered. "Therefore, we only reproduce with them. I'm unsure if it's out of love or lust...I've never experienced it. But what I know is that...when the time comes, Chise...it'll be out of nothing but intimacy."

She squeaked gently. "Only between us?"

"Only you and me." He affirmed.

She came forward and rested herself against his chest, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath of his scent. Her arms came to rest on his chest as her head came to his neck. She laid many kisses on the surface of his purple skin, and finally wrapped her arms around his neck. Elias rested a hand on her back as he tilted his skull and grazed the back of hers. She got goosebumps feeling his teeth trail along her neck. She shivered in delight.

"Elias..." She started.

"Yes?"

"When we... _do_ do that," She looked up at him intently. "I don't want you to use your human form. Not even so you can kiss me, or... try and do it the 'right way'."

His tone went curious. "Why?" He asked.

"Because when we make love, I want it to be special." She closed her eyes and smiled. "I don't want to give myself to only _apart_ of you. I want to give it to the _**real**_ Elias. The man I love...the only one I love. And I don't want there to be any exceptions."

He went breathless. "Chise..."

"I've been yours for awhile, but...when you take me that night, Elias, please know that you'll also be taking the one thing I can never get back." She continued. "It's very special for us humans - the first time. I want to make sure mine goes to you and only you. You're the man I love, and I know that'll never change. You can keep that with you forever, and you can let everyone know I'm yours once you take it."

He brought her closer to him, wrapping his arms around her figure tightly. She had never felt him embrace her so endearingly. It felt like he was truly protecting her. From no real threat, but...an assurance that he'd be the one for her. That no one else could take her so long as she was within his arms. And she had no issues with that.

"I will," Elias promised. "Believe me, Chise. The moment you give yourself to me - the rest of the world will know. I won't ever take advantage of you...you won't regret it."

She squeezed the side of his arms tightly. "I know I won't."


	26. Promise Pt 2 (NSFW)

Elias didn't know what impression he left on Silky when he asked her to leave the house and fetch more herbs. It was quite a normal chat between them at first(On _his_ end, anyway.) He asked her to acquire some more one evening after realizing the shortage of medical remedies - or at least ingredients for it. When in reality, Elias never checked if they were low in the first place. He must've assumed correctly, because the brownie agreed to his demands without any protest.

It was only when he asked her to get them from Town did she grow suspicious.

He noticed the intent gaze from her pink eyes. It was a stern look...much different than her usual soft face. She often locked her jaw and gave people silent messages when she felt indifferent or questionable. Elias rubbed the side of his skull as he quietly went through some excuses in his head.

"I want to experiment with some new kinds," He suggested with a weak wave of the hand. "The ones at the store, yes. I'd like some if you wouldn't mind."

She tilted her chin upwards. Elias understood the message. It was easy to read brownies the longer you were with them, he supposed.

"I intend to lecture Chise this evening, and the session is important for her studies. I would go myself if I had the time - but you'd be doing me quite a favor. I've been good, haven't I?"

She scrutinized him quietly. And then she turned on her heel and grabbed for some things on the counter. He watched as she reached for her purse and threw on a small jacket over her dressed figure. He knew then that he had won. The Town was awfully longer way than the normal route she took to gather them from the forest...and that was exactly what he wanted.

He watched as she left the house, turning to wave at him and motion with her head to tell Chise she'd be gone. Elias nodded and waved back. He turned on his own heel as he looked around the house. He was going to try and find Ruth now. He crossed his fingers under his robe as his orbs gazed around intently. He hoped he wasn't be with Chise right now...that would ruin his plan entirely.

Thankfully, he found the black grim in the backyard sniffing at some bushes. Elias glanced around twice and found that Chise was nowhere to be seen. He went through the door and approached him. He must've startled the familiar, as Ruth jumped when he saw his figure emerge from the house.

"Ah - I'm sorry, Elias. I wasn't eating anything. I promise."

He glanced at the bushes for a moment. "I wasn't going to question your actions...I was actually hoping to request you to do some business for me?"

"Business?" The dog repeated.

"Yes." Elias nodded his skull. "Chise and I are going to have an arrangement very soon. Tonight. And I need you to be elsewhere - it isn't something that requires your presence."

"Well what are you two going to be doing?" Ruth retorted.

The magus went silent as he thought of a response. He hadn't expected him to question it. But he was saved an explanation because Ruth got the message right away. The grim's red eyes widened and his jaw went agape. Then he lowered his head and studied the ground for a moment. It was as if the idea of...such an arrangement hadn't crossed his mind. He coughed and tried his best to avoid Elias' gaze.

"Ah...I didn't think _that_ would be happening so soon." He managed awkwardly. "Alright. I'll leave as soon as possible. I have a few things I wanted to check out in the forest, anyway. I'll try my best to be gone for as long as I can."

The magus held up a hand. "And, Ruth...The thoughts Chise may be having tonight are going to be...well..."

"-I know." The dog shivered. "And I think I'm strong enough to bare with it. If you cause her any unnecessary pain, Elias, then I'll be back in an instant. But I trust you'll be careful with her - you have my blessing as her familiar."

"Such a thing won't happen," Elias assured.

"Then I'll be off. I hope you two have a good night."

The two of them shared a nod. Ruth glanced back at the house before running off. Particularly in the direction of the forest. Elias watched as his figure disappeared into the shadows. He turned back into the house and grabbed at the ends of his robe in thought. Now it was time to put his plan into action...the one he'd been thinking of for weeks now.

* * *

The magus wasn't particularly proud of the research he had to make. Nothing to perform what he'd be doing tonight - he knew enough about _that_ \- but the process GETTING to it. He was little informed on human romanticism, and that caused issues on how to ease into such an activity. He knew Chise preferred for things to be gradual...she would be upset with him if he tried to rush into it right away. And that wasn't an idea he was particularly fond of, anyway.

Elias didn't inform her of his plan. She mentioned the idea of sex to him before, and they had a rather emotional discussion about it that night...what he learned from that evening was that she _actually_ desired this. Far more than he would've assumed. _She_ was the one who brought up the idea with him, even though Elias had been debating it for awhile now.

He had been decorating their bedroom for the past 15 minutes now. He wanted most - if not, everything - to be her liking. He read somewhere that a romantic scenery among humans involved candles, rose petals, and the color red. He wasn't sure what was so appealing about it, but he went with it, anyway. He bought some candles from the store the other day in Chise's favorite scent.

He took a rose out from his robe's pocket and started to pick the petals off from its bud and onto the bed. Again, he wasn't sure what was so romantic about this...but he assumed Chise would find something in it. Elias discarded the empty stem and took a step back and admired the sight. Humans had such impeccable taste, but it wasn't anything overbearing. It still seemed quite simple. Definitely something he could get comfortable with - and hopefully Chise could, too.

He left the room and quietly crept down the stairs. She insisted on studying on the couch that day, hoping that a change of scenery would help her better. Elias hadn't objected to it when she asked him and decided to use that to aid his plans. She couldn't have asked what he was doing spending so much time upstairs if she had her nose tucked into her book for an hour or so. While she was preparing herself for a night of lecture, Elias had been prepping them for a night of pleasure.

Elias came at the right time. She left her studies to use the restroom by the time he reached the couch. He took an unattended pen left lying on top of her notes(he didn't bother burning them...that would've upset her mood greatly) and left a bold note on the top. The moment he was done, he climbed back up the stairs and disappeared into the bedroom.

* * *

Chise came out from the restroom fixing her shirt and sighing as she came back to her work. She didn't understand why Elias insisted on a night lecture today. She did a lot better in the afternoon...where she couldn't get tired and could see the work better. She assumed he'd know that, being her teacher for such along time now. But he seemed pretty set on having this session at night, so she just prep herself as much as she could.

As she sat down and came back to her work, she found that someone had messed with her papers while she was gone. Probably Ruth, she figured. But then her green eyes traveled over the top note she left resting inside her book, and she saw writing far prettier than hers written at the top. Chise took the paper in her hands and read it with wide eyes.

 _Meet me in the bedroom_

-Elias

Her body trembled a little at the vague message he had written. Meet him for... _what_? Was their session going to be in the bedroom? Her throat suddenly went dry. She stood up and hastily gathered her books, hoping that her instinct was right and that she'd need them. She came up the stairs quickly, not even bothering to pick the notes that had fallen, and took a sharp turn into their bedroom.

What she saw made her jaw go wide.

It felt like she stepped into a different atmosphere the moment she came into Elias' dimmed-lit room. The blinds of the windows were closed and the room was illuminated by nothing but candles, all of which were set carefully on the nightstands and on any other shelves in the room. A red blanket was draped over the bed, as well as various rose pedals sitting on its surface. Chise sniffed the vanilla aroma in the air as she took a step forward and laid a hand on the edge of the bed.

"It's so soft..." She murmured.

 _"Do you like it?"_

She smiled as she turned around and watched as Elias' shadow formed in front of her. His figure soon looked down on her, with his hands placed behind his back as he leaned down to meet her eye level. She was far too relaxed to be surprised by this, but she wouldn't doubt the confusion it caused her. Why the bedroom would be set up like this for a mere studying session baffled her.

The magus took the books out from her arms and threw them to the side. "You won't be needing these."

She listened as the books fell to the floor carelessly. It was if he didn't care about them at all. She blinked before turning back to him, clearly confused with this turn of event. "W-What do you mean, Elias?"

"I decided to skip our session for today," He explained, standing up straight. "I wanted to give you a little break."

She glanced back at the bed and started piecing things together. She suddenly felt so stupid for thinking that this was just another study session. Of _course_ it wouldn't...why would he want to help her study magic on rose buds? Her face went red as she realized what exactly was happening. Then her heart started to repeatedly thud, and she grew extremely warm.

"So, do you like it?" He asked again.

"Y-Yes...I do..." She cleared her throat. "I just...I wasn't expecting-"

"-It was a surprise." He interrupted. "You weren't supposed to expect it."

Chise's blush deepened. The warm air wasn't going to help her cool down anytime soon...her breath grew a little short as she looked around. Everything still seemed so nice and peaceful, but...she was still nervous. Were they really going to do...the _thing_? She wasn't prepared at ALL! She was hoping it would be some special night...maybe their first anniversary, or a night on a vacation.

"W-What about Silky?" She turned to him suddenly. "And Ruth?"

He didn't hesitate. "Both are gone. It's just me and you tonight, Chise."

She went breathless. "Me and... _you_?" She looked back at the bed, then shyly back to her vest and skirt. "I...I don't think I'm dressed for this, Elias. Usually we're supposed to wear something revealing or-"

"You always look beautiful to me." He took a step forward and held her face in his hands. "What you wear doesn't matter. It's not like you're going to keep it on for the rest of the night, anyway."

This only made her blush deeper.

"Elias, I..." She placed her hands over his gloved ones. "I don't know what to say."

Her eyes suddenly grew teary. She really didn't know why. She thought he'd have this high expectation of her - to give her a chance to beautify herself so she'd look appealing to him in some way...so she could look like the other beautiful fae out there...but here he was insisting that her on a normal day was absolutely fine. She knew that his love for her was genuine this whole time, but this little compliment took her away...

He leaned down and kissed her cheek, grazing his skull against it. "Now, now, don't cry. If you don't want to do this, then we don't have-"

"I do!" She exclaimed, letting go of his hands and grabbing his head. "Elias, I want this so badly. I have for a long time! I-I've been looking forward to it for so long..."

He removed his skull from her hands and rested them on her shoulders. "-So have I. Ever since you mentioned it, I wanted to make this night special. That's why I arranged things so it's only us."

She tilted her head. "How did you get Silky to leave?"

"As far she knows, we're out of herbs." He replied. "And Ruth...well, he knows about it, and he's perfectly fine with it."

Chise blushed. Oh, god...what was going to happen tonight was going to be stuck with _him_ , too! She felt embarrassed just thinking of that. Everything _she_ was feeling, he'd be feeling, too. She'll be sure to buy him a dog treat for enduring this...

"Is there anything I'm missing? Anything you wanted?"

She looked around the room and gently bathed in the warm, quiet atmosphere. The vivid scenarios she experienced in her dreams were...well, nothing like this. Sometimes she had some in the woods or anywhere else wild and eccentric. And they were often wild - where he acted like some sort of beast and Chise was often succumbed to the sudden, sexual nature he inhibited in her dreams...seeing such a calm atmosphere was quite the contrast.

"There's nothing else I want besides you, Elias." She stated firmly.

He smiled. She could tell from the look of his eye. "Chise..."

He leaned forward rather longingly. She felt satisfied that she had this advantage now - managed to catch him off guard. She trailed a finger on the end of his jaw before turning and walking towards the bed. She slipped off her shoes easily and now rested herself on the bed. She laid her hand on the surface of the blankets and momentarily bathed in their softness and fresh scent. This was _definitely_ better than the hard ground her dreams often had.

She looked up and found Elias staring at her, still standing across the room. She motioned the petals off of her and sat up on the bed, opening her arms and extending them out to her husband.

"Well, don't you want to start?" She asked, ignoring how fast her heart was beating. "Come get me, Elias."

* * *

 **TO READ THE REST OF THE FIC(IT IS NSFW), GO TO TNBC-THOUGHTS ON TUMBLR!  
**


	27. Fun

"Elias, can you pass me my pencil from over there?"

The magus glanced up from the book held in his hands and guided his skull over to the direction of the table across from him. On its glass surface was the scattered mess of papers and books that resulted from their session earlier today. He caught sight of a wooden pencil laid on a corner of the table, dangling the eraser's end over the edge nearest to him.

The only issue was, Chise was a few inches away from it.

"You can reach it," He dismissed, going back to his book.

"No, I can't. See?"

His orbs looked up from the aged pages and watched as she extended her arm out and lazily reached for the pencil. Her fingers weren't close enough to graze the surface of the eraser. Though, if she simply sat up on the couch or leaned forward, she could reach it easily and the issue would have been over with. The fact that she wasn't was rather peculiar as it is.

Elias watched her try this a couple more times until she lowered her arm in defeat. She looked back on the couch at Elias with puppy eyes. Seeing her green eyed glisten within its watery surface reflecting the bits of sun gave him a twinge in his chest. She really was utterly adorable - and using those eyes on him made Elias succumb to things like this. He strengthened his grip on his book as he held back the impulse to get up and just grab it for her.

"Yes, you can." He urged. "Lean forward and grab it. It's a simple solution, really."

He brought his eyes back to the pages, knowing that he'd fall mercy to her puppy eyes if she held it long enough. Her heard her huff from the couch as she trudged over to the table. For a moment, he believed he had done something wrong. Or said something to upset her. Her posture was hung over as she hastily grabbed the pencil, then turned to stick her lower lip out to Elias.

He pretended to read the book.

"I'm just so tired." The redhead started to mourn, placing a hand on her forehead dramatically. "I think the spring season is getting to me."

The magus replied, "If you need to, take a nap. There's plenty of time left in the day."

Another huff.

Elias finally bothered looking up from the pages to glance at her confusedly. He didn't understand this gesture - this implication that he had bothered her with such simple suggestions. It wasn't a big deal, was it? The pencil was within her reach if she brought herself closer to it. She really didn't need to go to the extent of getting up and standing in front of him, if that's what bothered her.

She started to rock herself on her boots, leaning her hips against the table gently. She smiled softly. He could tell by the light in her eyes that she was in a good mood, despite what her body language told him. But there was something wrong in her posture as well...something she was hiding from him.

"Is something wrong?" He asked.

"No," She started to yawn, lifting a hand up to cover her mouth. "I'm just _tired_."

"The suggestion still stands."

She hesitated, looking away from him and glancing outside the nearest window. Then she turned to him and tilted her head, resting it gently on her shoulder. "-You're right, Elias. I _should_ take a nap."

"Very good. I'll wake you when it's tea time."

He looked back to the book again and finally flipped the page. Right when he got engrossed in its contents again, he noticed the sight of green still lingering beyond his book. He knew it belonged to Chise, which meant she hadn't moved at all from her last answer. He went to lift down his book so he could talk to her properly, but before he could, Chise brought herself to him and gently plopped herself into his lap.

"I think I'll sleep _here_."

The magus watched with intent eyes as she settled herself on him, clinging to the lower part of his vest and resting her head on his chest. She didn't stir or move at all. Her body felt completely light, and her skin was colder than usual. He hesitatingly went back to his book and had just continued reading until he felt her move a tad bit. When he glanced down, he found a smile worn on his apprentice's face.

He waited. Right when his eyes landed back on the page, he felt her body move again. Except this time he managed to catch her action - which was a simple lift of her shoulders and upper back. She stopped it the moment his orbs landed on her again, though the smile still remained on her lips. It was then that he finally understood what was going on.

She was giggling.

"Might I ask what's so amusing?" He inquired, gently lifting his skull to hover above her head. She remained unmoved and shut her eyes tighter. Elias refrained the urge to roll his eyes when he heard her start faking some snores.

An idea suddenly came to him. He bookmarked the page and lazily threw it back on the table, landing on its surface with a loud slap. Chise jumped at the noise, but still refused to move. She clung onto his side tighter as her grin widened. Elias lifted his head and started looking around the room lazily. He relaxed himself on the chair and sat back rather sluggishly.

"Oh, dear...it seems my apprentice has fallen asleep on my lap." He lamented. "And I've got to deliver Simon's medicine in only half an hour. What am I to do?"

He felt her giggle very softly on top of him.

"I guess there's only one thing left to do."

He felt her head start to lift very gently, as if to ask him exactly _what_ he had planned. But then she remembered she was supposed to be "fake sleeping", so she rested it back on his chest abruptly. Elias waited a few moments before slowly lifting himself from the chair. Chise appeared to be really committed to this role, for she hadn't reached for the arm rest or let herself be dropped to the ground. Instead, her grip on him tightened. To the point where _he_ was the only thing holding her from falling onto the floor.

After an exaggerated second or two, Elias finally dismissed himself from the chair. He held onto Chise to ensure she wouldn't fall, holding her close to bridal style as he stood up straight. Her posture was still tense and her grip was firm, so she definitely wasn't asleep yet. That is - if she'd been _trying_ to sleep at all.

"I should take her with me to prepare the medicine," He said aloud, finally walking out from the living room. "I'm sure she won't stir."

He caught her slightly exposing her teeth from the corner of his eye, opening her mouth to giggle again before shutting it. Her eyes closed tighter as she pretended to sleep. Elias suddenly stopped in the middle of the hallway. When he felt her move slightly, he went forward and started to dip her out from his grasp.

"-Or maybe it'd be easier if I left her _here_."

The moment Chise's boot touched the ground, she scurried herself back into Elias' arms. He dipped her again, this time head-first to the ground. She would've landed like that on the hard tile, too, if he hadn't pulled her back in time. That was when Chise opened her eyes and let out that giggle she'd been holding in for so long. It was so bright and cheerful - the exact laugh he wanted from her since the beginning. It gave him wonderful tingles as he heard her manage her words through her giggles.

"Elias - _stop!_ "

"Ah, so it seems she IS awake." He commented, bringing her figure up so she could look at him in the eye. "Then that means you were playing a trick on me, weren't you?"

Her eyes darted away from him. It was clear that she loved this type of play. She wouldn't be encouraging it if she didn't. "-Maybe."

"Fooling an old mage. That's not a good record - not in my book." He pretended to drop her again. "Perhaps I _should_ leave you here."

"No!" She cried, entwining her fingers behind his neck so she couldn't fall.

"And why not?" He urged her closer to the ground.

Her voice went higher, as if she were mocking a younger child. "Because the ground is cold, and your arms are so warm, Elias. I'd have you as my bed than the floor any day."

The response humored him enough. He bounced her into the air so he could shuffle her into his arms again. Chise made a noise in comfort the moment she was back in her previous position. Right when she began to settle into his arms, Elias grabbed her again and threw of her over his shoulder. She let out a gasp as her chest came down to his clavicle. He started walking again, his hand firmly pressed on her waist so she couldn't fall.

"Elias!" She grinned, slapping the back of his vest. It didn't hurt him at all. "Put me back!"

"Why should I?" He glanced back at her. "If you can play with me, Chise, then I have every right to play with you back."

"But it's no fun when _you_ do it." She whined, letting her figure slump over his shoulder. Her arms dangled in the air as she puffed her lower lip out again. He couldn't see it, but he could tell she had those puppy eyes again.

"No _fun_?" He repeated.

He stepped aside into the laundry room so he could grab Chise and start spinning her around. She was completely released from his body for a moment as he held her in the air. Then his gloved hands came to her waist, where he pressed her against his torso and continued spinning her. Chise's red hair messily flew around her face as she circled around him.

"I'm getting d-i-i-i-i-zy!" She cried.

Elias finally stopped, lowering her so she could rest her head on the top of his snout. He watched as her eyes circled around in their sockets, and she closed her eyes for a moment to try and get her breath back. She acted as if he ruined the fun, but the grin spreading from her ear to the other told Elias otherwise. She gathered herself by blinking a few times.

"Okay...that was a _little_ fun." She admitted.

"A little?" He repeated in disappointment. "What do I have to do? Take you to an amusement park?"

"It wouldn't hurt," She replied.

"Maybe another time." He placed her on top of the dryer carefully. "Not unless you admit I'm fun"

"Admit you're _fun_ , Elias?" She replied in disbelief. He gave her a dry look in return, as to which she shrugged her shoulders and looked away from him shyly. "I-I mean...maybe you're a LITTLE."

"What makes me not?" He asked. He rested both his hands on either side of her, looking into her eyes attentively. She grabbed the end of his skull and laid a kiss on it before thinking of an answer.

"We study most of the time, and you prefer to be home a lot." She pointed out. "Our dates really aren't far from home...I think the farthest you've ever taken me was to that Rules restaurant."

"Are you saying you'd like to leave London?" He asked.

"No! Well, maybe? I don't know. Maybe a trip or two wouldn't hurt. There's so much I want to see. So much I want to do." She rested her forehead on his. "As long as it's with _you_..."

She closed her eyes and started nuzzling the surface of his bone. He stared at her while she did this. He wanted to bury himself in the warmth she gave him - the soft feeling in his chest that always weakened his body whenever she touched him in any way. He loved playing with her, really did. But he preferred affection more than teasing. It gave him such wonderful butterflies to hear her preferring his company.

She brought her head away from his and bit her lip. "I know I was faking it and all, but...I...actually _do_ want to take a nap on your lap? If it's alright with you."

"Why wouldn't it be?" He replied, love struck by the tingles her nuzzles left him.

"You have medicine to give to Simon," She brought up.

"He can wait." He waved it off. "Why would I want to remove my precious robin from my lap while she's sleeping? You look most beautiful when you do, you know."

She blushed. He picked her up from the machine and carried her back to the living room. The moment he sat down on the couch, Chise placed herself on his lap and rested her upper body in the gap. He felt her nuzzle her nose on his thigh. Slowly but surely, Chise relaxed herself on him as her body lay lazily on the rest of the cushions. Elias began to brush her hair behind her ear, then rubbed her back as she drifted off to sleep.

The doorbell that sounded after would be attended to later.


	28. Chocolate

The sound of Silky closing the front door was deafening to the silence of the Ainsworth household.

The brownie stood in the doorway for a few moments, quietly admiring the silence of the house. There were plenty of lazy weekends or quiet evenings she indulged herself in, but it was quite a rarity to come home from errands without anything awaiting you. She hovered her foot slightly over the carpet - pink eyes drawing around the room. She froze the moment she saw a smear of black. She waits a second before turning to her side, and there she found Ruth breathing heavily on her shoulder.

Silky trudged on, feeling his presence lingering around her figure. He normally hovered around her whenever she returned home with groceries. She shuffled the brown bags in her arm as she gently set them on the counter, and started to peek through them to try and plan what she should remove first. She gently hummed a melody as she started to unpack the containers of jams.

As she peeked inside a bag, she suddenly felt an oddity behind her. The brownie glanced up and found Elias' skull curiously looking down at her. Though it wasn't entirely at her - his red orbs were focused on the contents of the bags. Silky looked over and found Ruth staring at the same thing. She understood this behavior from Chise's familiar, but for the mage, it was completely out of the ordinary.

"Did you get the pepper I asked for?" Elias asked.

She suddenly remembered what he asked for, and reached inside the left bag to pull out a small container of black pepper. It was the simplest ingredient he'd ever asked from her, and she was happy to turn around and hand it to him in his gloved hand. He clutched it and thanked her with a nod of his skull. Ruth started to inch his way closer to the counter, hands eagerly trailing over to the bags.

As soon as she finishing unloading the third one, she felt Elias' presence again. She looked over and found him standing beside Ruth. The familiar's mouth was currently watering, and the magus' eyes widened in interest. Silky glanced over and found them gawking at a pile of chocolate candy bars. The last few things she grabbed at the store.

"Woah," Ruth commented.

When Silky found him trying to grab a bar, she reached over and smacked his hand. She hadn't meant any harm, but he withdrew it right away and rubbed the pale surface. He gave her a hurt look - giving the brownie a twinge in her chest - while Elias watched them curiously. She felt a little embarrassed and held a gloved hand over her cheek, trying to hide the slight blush that had grown on it.

Elias clasped his gloved hands behind his back and leaned forward. "Are you planning on making a dessert tonight, Silver Lady?"

She shook her head, grabbing the chocolate and hiding it from their sight. She wished desperately he would leave the kitchen and inquire no more, but Elias still hovered. Ruth did as well, though she didn't mind his company. Silky continued to empty the bags, shifting uncomfortably, until the groceries were gone. All that was left was the pile of chocolate on the counter - and Ruth's drool had made it onto the marble of the counter.

"Is it for you?" He asked. Silky shook her head. "Huh. You sometimes buy _chocolate_ , but not candy bars..."

"I am confused as well." Elias added. "Who is it for?"

Before she could answer, Chise hopped into the room, quietly skipping on the heel of her shoes. She came to Silky's side and her green eyes lit up at the sight of chocolate. She reached forward and grabbed them, leaning forward to hug Silky with one arm, and holding the bars close to her chest. The brownie softened in her grip and lightly patted her back, closing her eyes and sniffing gently.

"I can't believe you got them!" The redhead exclaimed. "Thank you so much, Silky."

Elias and Ruth watched from the side. They exchanged glances, wondering if the other understood what had happened. As soon as Chise let go of her, she turned around and stopped when she saw the two males eying her. A blush suddenly spread on her cheeks, and she hastily hid the bars behind her back.

"Elias...Ruth..." She murmured.

"What's the chocolate for?" Her familiar stepped forward and tried to reach behind her back. "I hope you're sharing it with me."

Silky swatted his hand. He withdrew them again and stepped away from her, gritting his teeth in pain. Chise giggled and shuffled the bars in her hand. She turned to give Silky a final nod of thanks before disappearing from the kitchen. Ruth stayed - but Elias left along with Chise. He followed behind her quietly as she climbed the stairs.

She hadn't noticed his presence until they came to her room. She stopped in her tracks and turned around, hiding them behind her back again. She gave him a shy smile. "Do you need something, Elias?"

"I am still curious." He stated again. "What is the chocolate for?"

"T-To eat." She stammered.

"Why so many?" He inquired. "Normally, humans only consume 1 bar. Of decent size. And you've got 3 of them."

"So!?" Chise snapped. Elias stared blankly at her. If he had eyelids, he'd be blinking at her in surprise right now. She sighed and stepped back, rubbing her arm as the guilt churned in her stomach.

"I'm sorry, Elias...it's just personal. P-Please leave me alone."

She went in her room and shut the door loudly. The magus stood there for a solid minute - staring at the wood and quietly believing she'd open it and explain why. But she never did. Eventually, he turned on his heel and climbed back down the stairs. He circled back to the kitchen and found Silky preparing lunch. Ruth was predictably hovering by her side. Elias approached the familiar first.

"Is Chise alright?"

"What do you mean?" Ruth quirked an eyebrow.

"She is acting odd." He rubbed his jaw with his thumb. "I just hope she is alright."

He closed his eyes for a moment until opening them again. He shrugged. "She's alright. From what I can get, anyway."

"Is she in pain?" He persisted.

He cringed. "A little...maybe you should check on her, Ainsworth. She's been acting a little moody to me, too. I think you can cheer her up."

"I see." Elias stared at the floor, then glanced over at Silky. She looked like she wanted to protest, but hadn't done anything. "-And you, Silver Lady?"

She turned to him and nodded. It was simple encouragement, which was all he needed. He climbed back up the stairs and quietly made his way to her room. Then he hovered by the door and rested his hand against he wall. It lingered over the surface of wood before gently knocking against it. He knocked 3 times and waited quietly for a response.

 _"Who is it?"_ She asked.

"Your teacher," He responded. A little dryly, but to the point. There was a brief pause before he heard her respond.

 _"...Come in."_

He twisted the doorknob and slowly opened it. He didn't do it all the way and paused once he saw Chise. She was sitting on the bed with a book open on her stomach. He must have interrupted her. He stood in the doorway and grasped the knob tighter. He went through things to say in his head - wondering what would be the right thing to mention first. He certainly didn't want to upset her...and she didn't seem in the best mood right now.

"I know you don't want to see me," He began. "But I'm worried about you. I do not like when you are in this mood, and I was wondering if I upset-"

"Just come in, Elias."

He watched as she closed the book and set it aside. He took this as an invitation to come in, and quietly closed the door until he heard it click. He took a step forward and sat on the edge of her bed. He was dressed in his vest and pants with his sleeves rolled up. He turned and quietly admired what Chise was wearing, which was just a simple getup of a vest and shorts with long socks.

"What were you saying?" She asked.

"Ah - yes." His eyes traveled away from her. "I was just coming in to...apologize, if I upset you."

"You didn't." He saw her squeeze her legs together. "I'm just...I don't know, I'm sorry."

He folded his hands together at the vague response, resting them in his lap as he turned to her. She was blushing very lightly - and he could sense she was warm. It was then that he picked up a scent. The profound one he had caught a month ago...when she lectured him on something new of her anatomy. Realization suddenly flooded in his head, and he felt a little ridiculous for not smelling it earlier.

"You are on your...cycle, aren't you?" He asked. "What is it called again?"

She looked away from him. "...Period." She answered.

"Your period," He repeated.

He had nothing to say after that, so they both sat there in rather tense silence. He started drumming his fingers lightly against her blankets. He noticed the sharp intake of breath she took, and stopped when he realized it bothered her. He didn't understand why or what made it annoying, but he ceased every action then. The only thing left to do was look at her, and he started to admire the way the sunlight reflected off her skin.

"Why are you staring at me!?" She snapped. He flinched very slightly - a little perturbed at her exclamation. She sighed again and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"It's just...just don't look at me."

Elias still didn't understand. What was the issue of him looking at her? She gave him a glare, so he turned away and stared at her window instead. He felt a little awkward just sitting there and listening to the chirps from the birds outside. He started to look at the details of the grass and the sky outside, and quietly bathed in the beautiful summer scene. The weather was so beautiful this time of day.

"Aren't you going to...talk?" She asked.

"I'm unsure of what to say," He glanced at her before flickering his eyes back to the trees. "I do not want to risk the possibility of upsetting you again."

"Elias, you never upset me." She sighed. "I'm just...it's just..."

Her words faded into the silence again. He listened as her breathing became heavy. It was then that he started to scoot closer to her, still keeping his distance from her figure. It assured him that she didn't know what to say, either - so surely he shouldn't be at fault for initiating conversation?

"You know, you never explained to me what your behavior is like." He rested his arm on his knee. "You act strangely. Different than you usual. And it's often around this time."

"I-I didn't?" She managed weakly. He shook his skull. Her eyes became a little watery. "I'm sorry, Elias...I-I'm sorry I forgot to..."

He watched as she wiped some tears from her eye. Every part of him obliged him to come forward and wrap his arms around her and try to soothe her, but he remembered what she said earlier. Her wish for him to leave her alone...He sat back painfully. His chest tightened the more he listened to her cry. He reached out and rested his hand on her knee carefully.

"Don't cry," He assured. "You were hugging me last time. That's why you forgot. It wasn't your fault at all."

She sniffled and hunched her shoulders up. "-You sure?"

"I'm positive." He nodded.

She took his palm in both of her hands and started rubbing her cheek against it softly. He watched with intent eyes. He could feel how hot she was underneath his hand. He could feel the moistness of the tears that had once fallen. His chest became cold, and he went closer to her so she could rest the side of her head on his shoulder. She quietly fingered the folds of his shirt while she stared at the bed thoughtfully.

"What is the chocolate for?" He asked.

"Me."

"...Is it because of your period?"

"Yeah." Her eyes slowly met his. "I...I've been craving it all day, and I asked Silky to grab me some from the store. I really needed them...I just needed something sweet."

"I see." His gaze went to the photos on her nightstand. He felt warm seeing one of him and Chise. "-And...it messes with your emotions?"

She paused. "Yeah..."

"It makes you angry." He commented. "You became sad, and then started crying. And now you're holding me close. I just don't understand."

She squeezed his arm with both of her hands. "Neither do I."

"That's peculiar. Humans not understanding themselves."

"We're very complex...especially females, around this time. We tend to act like this and we can't really control it." Her grip hardened. "I'm sorry, Elias...you didn't deserve any of that. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm so sorry I got mad."

He heard her sniffle and placed a hand to her head worriedly. "Please, don't cry again."

Her tears fell on his vest. "I won't..."

He turned so he could hold Chise, and she rested her face on his chest. She refused to look up at him or remove herself from his touch. He didn't understand this shift, either, but he enjoyed the closeness. He was unsure whether she was still upset at him or not. He felt her fingers entwine with his gloved ones, and she relaxed herself in his grasp. He lightly squeezed the back of her palm.

"So, the chocolate helps?" He asked.

"It does. It settles my cravings, which puts me in a better mood, I guess..." She shrugged. "It just tastes so good and so sweet. More than it usually does."

"Hmm. I suppose I'll have to make a note of that."

The two of them settled against each other in silence. The peacefulness from outside really added to the calm, warm atmosphere of the room now. Elias started to rub her head, and brushed the auburn strands of her hair out from her face. She held onto his hand tightly and looked up at him with green eyes. Eyes full of confusion, sadness, happiness, and anger. It was a mixture of emotion - and he found it rather beautiful.

"Do you mean the things you say, around this time?" He asked, admiring the wonderful colors of her eyes.

"Not really. It depends on what I'm saying." She blinked at him.

"So you really wanted me to leave you alone?"

"No." She shook her head, still looking at him. "That isn't what I wanted at _all_. I regretted it the moment I told you it, and I kept thinking about you while I was alone."

He hesitated, rubbing his thumb on her cheek. Her skin was so soft and pale...she even felt different at this time. "-You were happy I came back?"

"Yes. Very." She placed her hand over his. "Thank you for coming back to me. When I didn't even deserve it."

"I'm cold without you. And you are quite warm, aren't you?"

She closed her eyes and smiled, brushing her cheek against his hand again. "Only with you, Elias."


	29. Nightmare

_"I'm sorry...I'm sorry...p-please...d-don't!"_

In the depths of his dreams, Elias could faintly make out the sobs of a girl. He couldn't recall what he'd been doing in the middle of a forest covered in blankets of snow. He must've been wandering around aimlessly until the sounds of cries caught his attention. His figure started to wander deeper past the bare trees. He was watching with hazy, red orbs in search for the source of the noise. Everything felt so real to him - from the bark of the trees underneath his bare hands to the coldness of the snow he beneath his heels.

 _"I-I just...w-wanted...be...take..."_

The words were becoming incomprehensible. The voice now hiccuped in between words. He felt something twinge from underneath his feathers. His searching became frantic. The familiarity of the voice...it hit close to his heart. He normally cared little for the weeping souls he'd encounter every now and then. But this one sounded so heartbroken. So desperate. So lost. And he felt connected with it. That, somehow, he was responsible for the weeping.

As he clawed at the night sky, he heard a scream.

 **"NO!"**

Almost instantly was he awoken from his dream. Elias shot up in the bed, clutching hard at the sheets below his figure. For a few moments his mind tried to process what was real and what wasn't. His eyes flickered as they traveled around in the darkness. He found nothing out of the usual from his room. The window was still shut, and things were silent outside. Just as his body went to settle against the bed, he heard the sobbing again. Except it was much closer this time...as if he could _feel_ the voice. As if it were coming from beside-

His chest tightened as he felt someone pull against his arm. He flipped his skull in the direction, and found two small hands clutching at his pajamas. The grip was unusually hard. Almost as if they were clinging onto him for dear life. He went forward and reached out, grabbing at the sides of the figure beside him and shaking very gently.

"Chise?" He asked. "Chise, is that you?"

Her hands let go of him as he shook her, and they fell to her sides weakly. He heard her scream again, which was now accompanied by several sniffles. He sat up in the bed and grabbed at her sides. He shook just a tad rougher this time and found her green eyes open in the darkness. They were moist and teary. He saw a wet trail forming from the ends of her eyes down to her jaw. A few more tears escaped from them. Everything in him instantly become cold.

"Elias..." She breathed, then hiccuped again.

"Were you crying?" He asked.

He wiped one of the tears with his thumb. It felt cold and wet, and held just a faint sent of salt. She opened her mouth to reply before falling forward. She wrapped her arms around him and clung harder than she had before. Her whole body was practically against his - fingernails digging into the folds of his pajamas as her legs wrapped around his hips securely. She put him in a position where he could no longer move. She was much weaker than him, true, but she certainly knew how to hold him down when she really wanted to. He hadn't any plans on leaving, anyway.

"Don't go..." She whined.

"I don't think there's anywhere for me to go." He started peeling the blankets off from them. "Are you alright, my precious robin?"

Her grip faltered the moment those words left his tongue. But then it tightened again, and her look hardened. Tears were still escaping her green eyes and falling from her chin. She was still trembling as she clutched onto his arms, sniffling more as her eyes locked on something from across the room. He tried to follow what she was looking at, but she was just staring into darkness. Her once-loud sobs became a murmur, and things turned silent in the room as she regained her breath. The color started to return to her face, contrasted to the pale, desperate look he had seen on her only a few minutes ago.

"I had a nightmare," She admitted quietly.

"A nightmare?" He repeated. "What about?"

Her eyes glanced over at him before looking away again. She held onto his arm as she stared to rock herself gently back and forth. Elias reached for her and carefully motioned her in his lap. He spared her the effort and started to rock her himself, hands lightly placed on both of her thighs. Her fingers dug into his arms as he rubbed her skin. A few more sniffles sound from her face. The silence answered his question. The nightmare must've been more serious than the ones she had before. She was a lot more open telling him about her common night terrors prior to tonight.

She leaned into him as he continued to rock her. She closed her eyes and started to hum to herself. A very sweet melody he heard her sing in the shower sometimes. His grip on her thighs tightened. She got the message and went quiet, looking back at him uncertainly. He returned the look as he began to rub the top of her knees. She bit her lip and bashfully looked away, going to wipe a few tears from her eyes.

"S-Sorry. I forget h-how that puts you to sl-sleep."

"Chise, you're stuttering."

"I-I am?"

He leaned down so he could rest his skull on her shoulder. Had he been in his human form, she would've caught the apprehension in his stare. But she didn't. He heard her breath hitch in her throat as their eyes locked with one another. He gazed at her thoughtfully and tried to piece things together. It actually wasn't rare to find Chise stuttering. She did it when she was nervous or didn't know what to say. It was a quirk he noticed the longer they'd been together. But what was truly infrequent was her stuttering _now_ \- her words getting mixed out of **fear** and not uncertainty.

His orbs became transfixed on her as his arms trailed upwards on the sides of her body. He started to gently rub her back, quietly hoping that his scales wouldn't rub too hard against her skin. She closed her eyes and moaned slightly, lifting her head as his hands found his way to her neck. He rubbed his thumb in circles and applied pressure to certain points she was stressed in. He felt her body relax the longer he massaged her, and the cries that once sounded from her were now gone.

"Was I in your nightmare?" He asked. He felt her shiver as his breath went against her skin, and his fingers trailed over the goosebumps that started to grow along her body.

"Y-Yes..." She answered.

He massaged some more on her shoulders. She let out an involuntary sigh - slouching over as his fingers did miracles to her. In honesty, he had only been massaging her to get rid of the stuttering. It bothered him to hear her be so afraid around him - or uncomfortable. It was one thing to feel her shake in his arms, but it was another to hear it actually _coming_ from her. So he prolonged this massage, drowning in the sounds of her moans and noises. He only stopped once he was positive that she was relaxed.

She looked back at him with gleaming, moistened eyes. He noticed how cold his hands were ever since they left her skin. "Why'd you stop?"

"There." He sounded pleased. "You were just a little unsettled."

A noise escaped from her throat as she looked away from him and held her hands to her chest. He continued to rock her and held his breath to listen for her cries. She was mostly silent now, save for the slight whine that was sounding from her. He rubbed his hands along her sides and squeezed her very gently. He wanted her to at least know he was there.

"It was about my family," She confessed. Elias hummed, pleased at her response yet very curious at the same time.

"Was it about your mother?"

She shook her head. "Not just her. My father and my brother were there, too..." Her grip on him tightened. "Th-They were being taken away..."

"By who?"

He lifted his hand to grasp hers. She grabbed it and started squeezing desperately. Her words came out in short breaths, visibly fighting back tears as she rested her head on him. He could feel her grinding her teeth together.

"I was just spending time w-with them, a-at this park, I think." She started shaking. "It going really well, I th-think my mom was really happy. But then these f-figures came. Completely black. A-And they started to drag them away, t-to this cliff..."

"Chise, you're tense again. Please, rela-"

"They threw them off." Her voice went low. "They looked me, straight in the eye, and threw them off." She looked up at Elias. Her expression looked grave. "They screamed my name, a-and they fell."

Elias went quiet as Chise stopped talking. The memories of her nightmare came back to her, and tears started to stream out from her eyes. The magus wrapped his arms around her and rocked her again. She moved with him and rested in his grasp, sighing as his warmth encased her. He went forward to wipe a tear from her eye.

"You said I was in your nightmare," He brought up.

"You were." She turned to him slowly. "W-When I went to my family, I wanted to jump o-off the cliff to get them...you came and held me back. You wouldn't let go. I-I kept screaming, but you still wouldn't let go."

He stiffened. "Did I say anything to you?"

"You told me it wasn't worth it." She started shaking her head. Her voice became susceptible to the cries escaping her throat. "Y-You just kept telling me it wasn't worth it. And I didn't believe you."

She broke down weeping again, turning so she could cry into his chest. He held his hand on her back as he sat there in surprise. He was taken aback at this revelation - because he recalled telling her something similar before. For what, he couldn't remember. He regained his senses the moment Chise removed herself from him, and she tried to wipe her tears with her hands. They became moist from the tears and she was practically smearing them all over her face.

"Did anything else happen?" He asked. She stopped crying and looked up at him, eyes reddened from the tears.

"I broke free," She looked away from him. "And then I jumped off the cliff. Y-You were crying out for me."

The room became silent as this lingered in the cold air around them. They both listened to the crickets for awhile. Elias was too busy trying to piece his thoughts together - to try and comprehend what that nightmare could've meant. He had plenty of assumptions, but he wasn't sure which of them was correct. She didn't speak of her family frequently to him. He could only remember very vague details about them.

"What I don't get-" Her voice came to a whisper. "-Is why you were there. I was alone with my family, but the moment they were taken, you came. But I don't understand why...you would come just to hold me back like that."

"Perhaps it was because I knew you'd risk your life?"

She looked at him, eyes widening as she became breathless. She hadn't even pondered that at all. She just assumed, in the dream, he was holding her back from her family. But his words now just sounded so sensible - she felt ridiculous for even assuming he'd do something like that. Elias' orbs studied her features intently, and she grew a little warm under his stare.

"Chise, dreams...from my understanding...aren't necessarily practical all the time." He leaned down so his skull was beside her. "They can be about anything - whether it makes sense or not. They can convey your desires, but they can also be the manifestation of your fears."

"What do you mean?" She squeaked.

"What I'm saying is that your nightmare may have been because you miss your family." He noticed her wincing. "You rarely talk about them. It seems as if you're bubbling up these fears about them - and the only way they can escape is through terrorizing you at night."

She bit her lip. "Since when did you become so eloquent, Elias?"

"I've been studying my own dreams." He explained. "Just tonight, I had one where I was lost in this forest. I wasn't sure where I was at or where I had been going. But I felt as if I was searching for something. And the moment I heard your voice, I felt like I found what I had been searching for all along."

Her mouth went agape. She absorbed this information and blushed very slightly at the revelation. "Are you saying...I'm your purpose?"

"If my dream had any meaning at all, that is what it might've been." He leaned forward. "And what I can gather from _your_ nightmare, Chise, is that you are afraid of rejoicing with your family, only to lose them like you had before."

She blinked rapidly, as if those thoughts hadn't occurred to her. Then she knotted her eyebrows together and started whispering things to herself. He made sense of what she was saying - she was just repeating his words over and over again. As if she was trying to convince herself that he was right. He looked away from her and placed a hand to the bottom of his jaw.

"I suppose then, by the same logic, you feel as if I'm a barrier to you. I'm keeping you from seeing your family again."

"What? N-No!" She went forward and grabbed at his shoulder. "That _can't_ be it."

"I was holding you back," He pointed out.

"From _danger_." She replied firmly. "From - from jumping off that cliff and killing myself. You...You saved my life again. And - and not just _physically_ like you have before. You were that reasonable side of me that I sometimes forget about. The part of me that's kept me alive so far."

His stare physically looked blank, but she noticed the thoughtfulness in his eyes. He looked touched by what she said, and there was a multitude of emotions lingering beyond that. She let go of him and slowly sat back, rubbing her arm to try and rid the coldness inside her body. She still felt a little shaken from the nightmare, but now that she knew what it was _about_ , she was starting to become a little less scared.

"A-And those fears you mentioned, Elias..." She sighed. "You were right. I am scared of going through that again. I don't know if I'll ever see them again. My baby brother or - or my dad. And I'm scared to think about what will happen if I do find them."

"Perhaps it won't be as bad as you think." He reached for her hand and started to stroke the side of her face. "Maybe speaking about them more will diminish those insecurities you have."

She winced. "But, if I ever _see_ them again-"

"You won't be alone." He assured. "I'll always be beside you, so long as you desire me to be there." He rubbed this thumb along her wedding ring. "That fear should be the least of your worries."

A smile finally grew on her face. He'd been yearning to see it so badly. And the moment he saw it, Elias felt his chest warm. He relaxed and leaned forward to nuzzle his skull against her cheek. She kissed his snout as he pulled back, and then leaned forward to nestle in his arms. She rested her head beside his skull and sighed longingly, bringing a hand to his other side.

"I'll talk about them more." She assured. "I promise. And maybe then I'll be a little less scared."

He held her close and started rubbing her head. "I wonder what they would think of me?"

She relaxed and closed her eyes, the smile widening on her soft lips. She couldn't help but giggle at the thought. "Yeah...me, too."


	30. Thermal

_"Adorable."_

That was all Chise Hatori could say after thinking about Lindel's stories. It was years ago when he first revealed to her certain snippets of Elias' life - how Lindel came across him when he was much younger and smaller. Stories of how he adapted to the world and shaped who he became. She was so invested in learning more about past that she hadn't given much thought to anything else. She realized, years later, that she missed quite an opportunity, given that she was practically speaking to Elias' father figure.

She paid Lindel a short visit some time after remembering those stories. She had a lot of other questions that began to bother her. She would've went to Elias himself for some of them, but she had a few that weren't really...appropriate to say. Or it would've been embarrassing, to say at the least. She felt a little less flustered asking some things to Lindel directly than her own husband.

She informed Silky she was leaving and told her to tell Elias, as he'd been out that afternoon. Ruth insisted coming with her, but she told him to stay home, as she felt this was something pertaining more to her. She left the house and teleported to the Dragon Aerie using her cane. She felt confident in her travels and succeeded in landing on the grass fields near the mountains and rivers. After being crowded by the baby dragons, she eventually found Lindel, who escorted her to his "home" that they could talk in.

She was sitting on a cushion now, treated to a cup of hot tea within a little wooden cup. She took a polite sip before making a face and gently setting it down beside her. She wasn't a fan of black tea - the taste was horribly indescribable. Judging by the chuckles she heard from Lindel sitting across from her, he must've known, too.

"So tell me," He began, placing a curious hand on the side of his face. "Why have you come today? Are you having troubles with Thorn? Issues usually come after the marriage, you know."

"What!?" Chise choked on her own breath. "N-No! Nothing's troubling us. At least, nothing new, anyway..."

"So, what is it? You usually don't pay me a visit. This is quite a surprise."

She cringed. "I know, I'm sorry...I'm trying to visit my friends more." She clenched her teeth. "But the reason I came today was because, well, I've just been thinking about something a lot."

He quirked an eyebrow.

"Nothing like _that_...well, no, it's...um.. _ahem!_ I was just thinking about those stories you told me. Years ago. When you were telling me about Elias' past, remember?"

"Ah, yes. I do." He breathed, closing his eyes to relish the memory. "You were so curious! The look in your eyes...I could tell then that you were in love with Thorn." His blue eyes glistened as he came closer. "-Tell me, child, do you still hold that same purity you had years ago?"

"I'm not sure. But I am still curious." She leaned forward so their faces were merely inches apart. "I want you to tell me more about Elias."

Lindel sat back, huffing as he placed his hands on his hips. "-That bonehead hasn't _told_ you!? Honestly! It's so infuriating! You'd think he'd open up to his own wife!"

"No! H-He's opened up more. At least, I think he has." She looked away from him. "Lindel, I want you to tell me more about how...how he _looked_. When he was younger."

She couldn't see it, but a look of interest suddenly flashed in his eyes. He cocked his head to the side and placed a finger to his lower lip, looking at he back of her head intently. As soon as she turned to him, he looked away and took a sharp intake of breath. It wasn't a question he was expecting...far from it, actually.

"How he _looked_?" He repeated.

She nodded. "Yes. I don't remember if you told me much about it before, but I want to know every detail. I-If you can remember, that is."

"Of _course_ I remember!" He looked at her incredulously. "How could I forget? It's one of the memories I hold closest to my heart. But don't tell Thorn that, okay?"

She nodded eagerly, watching as he took a seat across from her and placed his hands on his knees. Lindel was always a good storyteller, at least in her opinion. She could remember his words years ago and still feel so entranced in the stories he told. But now she wanted to picture everything. So she could have a good idea on how Elias grew up, in case they ever wanted to...to...

"Well, maybe I should start with his size." He rubbed the end of his chin. "When I first met him, he was taller than me - a little over his usual height that you're used to. But then he changed sizes, and he was only up to here when he did." He held a hand just above Chise's head. "It wasn't intimidating seeing him have to look up at me. Quite a change from now."

She tilted her head in fascination. She's aware of his ability to change sizes; he usually demonstrated this by changing his forms. But she couldn't fathom the image of his full stature reaching just below her hips. He always seemed so bigger than her no matter what he was...imagining otherwise was interesting, to say at the least.

"Now, I'm not an expert on his species. I only know as much about it as he does." He admitted with a sigh. "But he always had this impression of wearing a cloak. It was a little ragged on the ends, but it was very smooth. Covered up most of his body, so I'm not sure what was ever underneath. I know he had paws, at least."

He paused, eyes glancing over at her to check if she was listening. Which was quite an understatement - Chise was absorbed in everything he was saying. A smile grew on his lips as he stopped. He began to titter, now staring at something from afar as he rubbed the side of his jaw.

"Now, what was _really_ interesting was the layer around his head. It must've been akin to those jackets I've seen humans wearing in the winter - fleece of some sort. I've touched that, too. It was very fluffy and soft. The space between that and his head was always so dark. I've never quite seen anything under it."

He began to contemplate the image, furrowing his eyebrows in thought. There wasn't as much detail to him as he remembered. The magus was just smaller and...well, simplified compared to how he was now. He still didn't understand why his wife would want to know such a thing. She's always been such a curious being, after all.

"Well, that's about it. I do apologize for the lack of imagery - I'd provide you with some pictures if I could. Yet, I cannot. I hope that at least satisfied what you came here for."

Chise went quiet as she tapped her lip, looking a bit troubled. Slowly, she asked, "Do you think...he could transform into that, again? If he wanted?"

Lindel considered her question. "I'm not too sure. Even as I've known that bonehead for so long, he still surprises me." He started to grin at her coyly. "Maybe you can ask him? He's done things for you he wouldn't do for me, after all."

"A-Ask him!?" She repeated in surprise. "I don't know if I can do that..."

"Then that's on you. I've told you all I could - I'm sure he can tell you more. It doesn't hurt to ask."

She lowered her eyes and nodded slowly. "Yeah...you're right."

She stood afterwards and went forward to shake his hand. He surprised her by stepping forward and hugging her. Even as it was only for a split second, it surprised Chise enough that she was completely stiff as he stepped back. Her arm was still extended, hand hovering in the air at the lack of a shake.

"You're growing so fast. It almost makes it feel like you're my own daughter." He chuckled. "Please, do come back soon. Even if it's about Elias, I don't mind the company. And the dragons don't, either."

She smiled, finally dropping her hand to the side. "I will. Thank you, Lindel."

She bid him goodbye, waving as she stepped out and ran into the fields again. She managed to avoid the dragons as she cast the spell with her cane again. She flew into the skies and began her journey home. Her mind felt at ease now - though she hasn't done everything she could to satisfy her curiosity.

* * *

She landed a little farther from home than she expected, but she enjoyed the walk. She admired how peaceful it was and how beautiful the sunset looked - casting all sorts of oranges, reds, and pinks into the sky. The moment she saw the house come into view, Chise began to run as fast as she could. By the time she came to the front door, she was out of breath and left clutching at her knees.

Silky was the one to open the door, leaning down to pat her head. Chise stood and returned the smile, bowing as a thanks and passing by her to enter the house. She rejoiced with Ruth, who'd been left laying on the couch and staring out of the window until she came back. He remarked how long she was gone and if the trip was really worth it, but she was ignoring him by that point. Her eyes were traveling about the room. She left her familiar in the midst of his rant in search for her husband.

It took a bit, but she finally found him walking out of a room and into the hallway. She couldn't control herself as she leaped forward, wrapping her arms around him and squeezing tightly. Even though she caught Elias off guard, he stood his ground and nearly dropped the envelopes in his hands. She felt his hand rest on her back as the other squeezed her.

"Welcome home, Chise. Did you have a safe trip?"

She nodded, finally letting go so she could look at him in the eye. "Yeah! It took longer than I thought, but it was great. I learned a lot."

Elias tilted his skull. "Where did you go? I'm afraid the Silky would't tell me."

"Oh." She completely forgot. "I left for the Dragon Aerie."

"What for?"

"To speak with Lindel," She replied casually. "See, I was remembering what he told me years ago, and - _h-hey!_ "

He strolled past her in the midst of her explanation. She chased after him and found him casually flipping through the envelopes again. She felt bothered by his leave, yet felt a little guilty, as she had done that to Ruth only a few minutes ago. He only stopped when they reached his library, and by that point Chise was just trying to catch her breath.

Right when she opened her mouth to speak, Elias interrupted her. "What on Earth were you talking to that man for, anyway?"

"Lindel?" She repeated apprehensively. "Well, he IS my friend. I just wanted to talk to him."

"You didn't need to."

"I _wanted_ to."

It seemed like he was ignoring her. He dropped the envelops on the table without much care and stood there. His back was still aimed at her. Chise felt a little empty, so she went forward to cling onto his arm. She rested her head on his back as her voice went quiet.

"Elias, the reason I talked to him was because...well, it was about you."

He turned to her in surprise. She could tell by how quick his skull snapped back. But he fell silent - and when Chise looked up, she could see him staring down at her blankly. Why did it feel like she was in trouble? She hadn't done anything bad! He always did this whenever she mentioned Lindel...

"I asked him a really stupid question. You wouldn't want to hear it." She mumbled.

"I do, though."

"You really don't."

"Is there something you can tell _him_ , but not me?"

She went quiet again. Going through every scenario in her head, she took a deep breath to prepare herself for whatever response he may have. She let go of his arm and stepped back, starting to rock herself to try and rid the nervous feeling in her stomach.

"I asked him what you looked like when you were younger. When he found you." She admitted, looking away from him. "Thinking about it now, I really should've just asked _you_ \- but, I...I just..."

He went forward and came down on one knee so he could level her height. She was beckoned to look up at him from his gloved hand cupping her cheek. Her eyes locked with his red orbs, an she felt the breath leave her throat. Her chest became very warm, and for a moment she thought he was going to go forward and kiss her. She wanted that so dearly.

"You want to know what I looked like?" He repeated. She nodded dumbly.

"Yes. I do."

There was a pause. "Why?"

"I want to know everything about you."

No hesitation at all. That was the upmost truth - what she was striving for, now. He already saved her from her curse. Saved her from everything. They were officially wed, and now she had a family. Yet there was still so much she had yet to learn. She felt like she was young all over again, constantly doing things just to learn more about him.

"Alright." He let go of her and stood. "What did he tell you?"

She fiddled with her hands, struggling as if she didn't remember. "He said you changed sizes and you seemed to have this long, smooth coat...and some fleece around your skull. A-And you also had these paws."

"Mm. He remembers well."

She looked up curiously. "He was right?"

"To a point." He moved around her to sit in a chair. "Although, I would describe myself a little differently."

She followed him and plopped down in his lap. She settled herself on his leg and rested the side of her body against his. She had fond memories of this position - they were in a very similar one when she was telling him about books. She felt his hand rest on her back, securing her so she wouldn't fall.

"How _would_ you describe it?" She asked.

"He was right about me changing sizes. I've always had that ability. I suppose it made me look much younger than I actually was. And as for the cloak and fleece - I don't remember much about them. I woke up wearing what I had, though I felt very bare in that thing as well."

"Did you steal it from a human you ate?"

He stiffened. She regretted asking that. She placed her hands over her mouth in surprise. She couldn't believe she just said that! She was so stupid. Now he probably won't tell her...She listened as he let out a dragged sigh afterwards, which only filled the guilt she had growing in her stomach now.

"I don't remember. Maybe I had, maybe I hadn't. Even though I have a natural coat, the winters were often unforgiving. I found clothes very useful - they keep me warmer when I need it."

"Coat?" She squeaked. "Like your feathers?"

"Yes." He nodded. "I suppose you could say I had an early development of my form underneath that. I'm...sure you remember which one I'm talking about."

"Yeah, I do."

She went forward to rest her head on his shoulder, where he lifted his skull and held a hand on the top of her head. He was so very unique...there was so much she couldn't fathom about him. All of his different forms and sizes and abilities. The image of each one was implanted in her brain. He was so much more than she could comprehend - more than _anyone_ could.

"Would you ever change into that form again?" She asked weakly. She had an odd urge to touch him - feel the surface of his scales and run her hands through his soft feathers. But there was nothing to feel at hat moment.

"I don't think I can," He admitted quietly.

She found something very positive from that response. "-I guess that means you're a natural warmer, huh, Elias?"

"I suppose."

"So, if I get really cold one night...or if we're ever out in winter...then you can just hold me in your coat and I'll stay warm?"

He laughed, which caught her off guard. She wasn't joking! Her blush deepened when he leaned down to nuzzle the side of her face. She felt very embarrassed and tried to push him away, but he grabbed her and nestled her in his arms before she could. He continued nuzzling the side of her face as he said:

"I suppose I would."


	31. Popcorn

A public date.

Elias wasn't too fond of these. The first one he and Chise ever went on(officially) was an evening he could never forget. And how could he, with all the judgemental looks they received and the gossip that spread among the fae after? He hadn't even been in his regular form when they went, as he decided on his human glamor that night. And they still looked like an odd pair out of everyone else - an older man with an undeniably younger partner. He hadn't been the only one with a beautiful woman clinging onto his arm then, though he was the luckiest out of all of them.

She _was_ his.

Chise enjoyed that time, he remembered. She kept smiling and, despite being a little nervous(he caught onto it), she still was left unbothered by the attention around them. If he remembered correctly, it was _her_ who had to convince Elias to not care about them. To not think twice about the looks or the rumors, but to enjoy their time together. To focus on what made him happy. And that was probably the most valuable lesson he had ever learned from her.

After enduring that eventful date, defeated from the effects of publicity and about ready to cave into his insecurities, Elias was taken aback by the strangest gesture. One he wouldn't have understood had she not done it - a **kiss**. And not one that they had shared in the confines of their home or in the land of the fae, but in public. Surrounded by complete strangers who were already uneasy about their presence.

An interesting thrill that, despite leaving his lips, never left his mind.

They were going to see a movie today - a showing about the romantic tale of two lovers breaking the barriers of society. A story he once would have never found interesting, yet found himself agreeing to Chise's invitation to see it. She once dedicated an afternoon showing him movies, and it was then he realized that other people's stories were a little...intriguing. Enough that he found himself engrossed with the tale of a beast and a human - who, despite their differences and curse, came together as a result of their love.

He finally found a connection. And now that he was in _love_ , he figured he could find something from this one as well.

His wife was more than happy from this, clutching onto his hand as she skipped happily on the sidewalks with him. They dressed casual for this date, compared to the usual formal ones they had been on before. Chise was dressed in a simple sweater, jeans, and sneakers while Elias chose his usual getup in his human façade. Despite seeing her in such an outfit many times, he still thought her beautiful. Especially with her grin stretching from ear to ear, as well as the faint blush on the sides of her cheeks.

They were only a block away from the theater when he noticed her feeling antsy. She was wriggling a little in his grasp and pulling a bit on her clothes. Whenever he'd glance over, he'd find Chise looking the other way. The blush would grow more on her cheeks and he'd find his heart beating faster. She looked adorable, yet her actions were a little confusing.

"Is something the matter?" He asks, slowing down his pace. This takes her by surprise and she almost stops her pace completely.

"Huh?" She blinks before shaking her head. "Oh, no. Nothing."

He arches an eyebrow. He's thankful for the expressions he can pull on his human face. "Are you sure?"

"I'm just really happy you agreed to do this," She blurted. "I know you're not too fond of people, and theaters are crowded with them, but you came, anyway."

"Of course. Any evening with you is an evening I'd enjoy."

She grew red and stuck her lower lip out. "I didn't want to bring Ruth because he predicts _every single ending_ to all the romance movies I've seen...and I didn't want to go alone because, well, they aren't really something you see by yourself. It's more of a family or...or a couple thing."

"Is that why you wanted to bring me?" He teased. "So you wouldn't have to be by yourself?"

"No!" The way she blushed made him smile. "You were actually the first person I thought of when I wanted to see this movie...I just didn't know whether or not you wanted to come."

His response was an assuring squeeze to her hand. By this point they were finally at the theater. He half expected to find a line out front, but found that they were only a couple of people purchasing their tickets. Chise swerved them out front and they waited patiently to buy theirs. As soon as that was done, she led him through the doors and they were both greeted by the smell of popcorn.

"Ooh," He could see her mouth already drooling. "Elias, can we-"

"Yes." He already knew what she was going to ask. Humans couldn't deny their cravings for certain scents - and for some reason, they preferred popcorn with movies. For what reason he had yet to know.

"Yay!"

After collecting their overpriced snacks, they left for their theater. Chise had to let go of his hand in order to hold the tub of popcorn, which was bigger than her own head. Elias was stuck holding their drinks and left to open the doors for her, in which she thanked him by pressing herself against his shoulder. He followed her to the seats, where they already found a few couples sitting and watching the previews.

She bit her lip and looked around uncertainly. "Maybe we should get a seat in the back...you're kind of tall, you know."

"Is the back bad?" He asks, following behind her as she takes a seat.

"No, I'd say it's better. The farther you are, the better view you have of the screen." She began to shovel popcorn in her mouth. "It's just that people are more likely to sit in front of you."

Elias looked up and found that they certainly had an advantage. Everyone else was spread farther from them, and they had a whole section empty spared for their seats. The view wasn't bad, either, as he had a clear shot over people's heads. The lights were also dimmer for some reason, giving the impression that it was darker back there. He grabbed some popcorn and tilted his head.

"I'm not sure why this is the desired snack for films. It's much too buttery and the amount is a little overwhelming for the two-hour setting."

To his surprise, she shushed him.

"Elias, you can't talk so loudly here!" She cringed as she looked at the other people. "You have to be quiet when the movie starts."

"But it _hasn't_ started."

"Yeah, but..." Her argument fell and she sighed. "You know what I mean..."

He could tell that she was now a little stressed, hunching up in her seat as she rested the tub on her lap. She began to eat more and more popcorn the longer the previews went on. So much that nearly the carton was half empty by the time the lights began to completely dim and everyone began hushing down. He felt a little guilty as he started to watch the movie for himself, deciding to remain quiet for the rest of the film.

* * *

It was at least halfway through the movie when Elias felt Chise's hand come down and grip his.

It startled him at first, being in such a dark, quiet environment and feeling a warm touch. But then he realized it was only her and settled down. There didn't seem to be particular reason why she held it - as nothing scary or bad had happened in the movie. He urged her palm into his and held it over the armrest, resting his chin in his other hand. He felt her squeeze his palm and had to refrain the urge to squeeze it back.

Aside from a few tiring subplots, the movie wasn't that bad. He enjoyed the first part of it, but now the scenes seemed to contain filler and unnecessary drama. He grew a little bored of a few scenes and would instead watch Chise from beside him. She, unlike him, was invested in this part of the story - and wouldn't take her green eyes off from the screen. Her other hand was almost robotic, gently carrying the kernels into her mouth and munching very quietly on them.

It was then he noticed the reflection on her lips. The butter from the popcorn must've rubbed off on it, as she'd been eating so many. They looked so soft and lubricated. He got the strangest urge to know whether they were wet or not. He found himself leaning towards her but hastily pulled himself back into his chair when she glanced in his direction.

 _"You okay?"_ She whispered. Her voice gave him chills.

"Yes, I'm fine."

She squeezed his hand again.

* * *

It came to the most amorous part of the film had Elias caught himself staring at her lips again.

He could remember the last time his human lips touched hers. How passionate and wonderful it was - the sensations he felt he couldn't normally feel in his other forms. He felt the wet imprints they'd leave on his skull or its soft surface on the tips of his teeth. Chise may not have known it, but kissing him in that form was an unbearable **tease**. Ever since he experienced the true thing, feeling her kisses on him when he couldn't give back was a frustration hard to ignore.

His cravings grew the more he stared. He was rubbing his gloved fingers across his own lips, trying to replicate the feeling of pressing against hers. By this point he had stopped paying all attention to the movie and instead had his focus on Chise. She was completely oblivious too - blushing and adjusting in her seat while the characters French kissed on screen. Which Elias didn't happen to notice.

He leaned forward and whispered into her ear. _"Can I kiss you?"_

She fumbled with the tub of popcorn, snapping her head in his direction. "-What!?"

"Shh." He teased, tapping his hand on the back of her chair. She groaned and lowered her voice. "-You want me to...kiss you?" She repeated.

"Only if you'd like."

She looked back at the screen, which tragically had the main characters engaged in a rather erotic French kiss. The first thing she saw was their tongues dancing around on screen. She let go of the popcorn to hide her face. She peeked through her fingers to watch Elias remove the tub from her lap and set it on a nearby seat, where nothing was no longer between them.

She took a deep breath before leaning in for a kiss. She shut her eyes right away - in hopes she wouldn't see the screen again. Or to stop herself from thinking about entering his mouth. These unforgivable _urges!_ Chise expected Elias to do just that, but he surprised her by cupping her face gently and giving her a quick yet meaningful kiss on the lips.

He sat back in his chair and let out a pleased noise. She got warmer in her seat.

"Lovely, you taste like popcorn." He complimented. Chise shakily reached for the tub again and bit her lower lip. She could still taste him as well.

"S-Sorry about that..."

"No. I like the butter taste." He licked his lips. "I guess I can forgive you for hogging it."

She hastily threw the tub into his lap, spilling a few kernels onto the floor. He laughed, but ended up being shushed by 20 or so other people in the theater. He fell silent as Chise hid her face in both hands, cramming herself as far as she could into her seat. He decided to go through the popcorn himself and started popping pieces into his mouth, chewing as quietly as he could.

He leaned beside her again. "Not bad, but nowhere near how it tastes on your lips."

She got the impulse to pull his face into hers and lay a passionate kiss on his lips. Which was what she did - surprising him enough that he spilled the tub on the floor completely and was nearly dragged out of his seat. As she pulled back, she licked his lower lip before retreating to her seat and wiping her mouth. Elias was left speechless in his seat.

"Funny...I could say the same for you." She grinned brightly.


	32. Intolerant

It was another scorching, summer day in the market. It was likely the reason why the stores were so crowded and everyone was ushered inside. The moment the air conditioning hit Chise Hatori's face, she couldn't hold back the relieving sigh that left after. She closed her eyes to savor the coolness, feeling the cold air brush against the back of her neck and lift up the ends of her shirt. She lifted her leg out of natural bliss - leaning upwards so she could get closer to the vent.

 _Chise, keep moving. You're blocking the doorway._

Of course it was Ruth who had to ruin it. She looked behind her and noticed the crowd gathering just behind her, all impatiently tapping their sides aiting for her to move on. She gave them an earnest smile as she trudged on, carrying both shopping bags at her sides as she walked down the sidewalk. Even _existing_ in the sun itself made her feel overheated, and for a moment she felt overdressed, despite being in a small shirt, skirt, and sandals.

She lifted one of her arms to wipe the sweat gathering on her forehead. Which would've been dried had Ruth not interrupted her. She turned back to give a sour look to her own shadow, which earned some skeptical glances from the strangers who passed her.

"It's no fair, you two." She scoffed. "You're cool in my shadow while I'm out here sweating."

 _"Think of it as easier travel,_ " Elias called quietly. _"It is quite crowded today. My form would be a disturbance to such narrow sidewalks."_

Ruth butted in. _"Plus, I'm wearing all black today. I'd rather you not have me die."_

Chise rolled her eyes. Typical excuses from them both. "Yeah, yeah. Where's the next stop, again?"

 _"You mentioned returning your books while gathering the groceries. You should probably do that now."_

"Oh, right!"

Her errand run had company today because of how many stops she'd be making. They neglected to check the weather, however, and ended up walking straight into the hot day. In the afternoon, no less. The first thing Elias and Ruth did was hide in her shadow, only leaving it when she actually needed help. At this point, Chise was just convinced they were using her. They could've just stayed home, after all.

She approached the bookstore a few minutes after. She was panting and scrambling for the vents by the time she got inside. She spent a few moments cooling herself down before walking around the shop. This was a good time as any to grab a few more books. She'd been meaning to, anyway. What with so much free time during the summer, when not tending to her gardens or leaning more from Elias.

She browsed some titles and hummed to herself. She planned on reading some more fictional stories. So far, she was interested in the popular titles, but planned on going through some romances. As she mused over the summary of one novel, she could hear Ruth snickering in her shadow.

 _"What's so funny?"_ She heard Elias inquire.

 _"It's silly. She thinks about you whenever she comes across a love story."_

 **"RUTH!"**

She heard a recollection of 'shh's ensue in the store and hunched herself into her shoulders. She continued on quietly, though now avoiding the romance section at all costs. She was purposely ducking her head underneath the bookshelves to avoid the looks from people nearby.

 _"Not to worry. I think it's endearing, Chise. I think of you while I read stories as well."_

She blushed. "Really..?"

 _"Yeah, yeah, you two are nuts for each other. Are you about done? We've got a couple more shops to go."_

Rolling her eyes, she gathered a few books and approached the front desk. After her business was done, she left the store and continued on the sidewalks. It was only a few feet after she left the store had the burden of the bags started weighing down on her. The books she got were quite thick - she wasn't even _thinking_ while grabbing them. Chise tried to hide her heavy breathing as she struggled to carry them.

 _"Are you alright?"_ Ruth asked from her shadow.

"I'm fine." She lied, attempting to get a better grip on the handles. "I just need to-"

The bottom of one of the bags suddenly ripped open, spewing the books onto the concrete. She had only a second to react before everything else in her hands fell. Quickly and ashamedly, she went to gather them. She tried to stuff everything in before either Elias and Ruth could leave her shadow. It'd be far too embarrassing to have them help her.

As she leaned down to pick the bags back up, she heard a loud whistle come from behind her.

 _"Need some help, sweetheart?"_

Slowly, Chise turned until she found a group of males standing across from her. They were a little under her age - older teenagers leaning against the side of one of the shops. They were currently whistling and pointing at her. She even heard a few in the back laughing and slapping hands. A blush grew on her cheeks as she went to pick up the last book.

"N-No thanks!"

She leaned down to put the book in the bag before hearing another whistle. She turned on her heel sharply to face them. They looked away from her and pretended they hadn't done anything. She narrowed her eyes angrily before taking a step forward. The leader of the group, she presumed, held his hands up in defense.

"'S alright, girl." He took a step back. "But, uh, I think you dropped something else."

He pointed behind her. Chise turned around and found that there were still a few groceries on the floor. As she leaned down to get them, she heard some hoots and hollers from the group again. She also heard a growl emitting from the pits of her shadow, but couldn't tell if it was from Elias or Ruth. She snapped her head back and found them grinning at her back.

Realization struck her. She hastily shoved everything back in the bags before standing up straight. Her face was red, but it wasn't because of the sun. She just wasn't used to people staring at her - especially certain _parts_. As she began to fume at them, Ruth emerged from her shadow and took a protective stance in front of her. He purposely took his older form and narrowed his eyes at the men.

"You guys need to scram." He warned. The group, astonished at his appearance yet still sportive, decided to rebut.

"And who are you? Her big brother?" The leader teased. This earned a supportive round of high-fives from his friends.

Ruth bit his lip. Chise stood uncertainly from behind him, wondering whether she should wallop them herself or actually watch Ruth defend her. He slowly lifted his arm down and began cracking his knuckles. Some of them flinched, which earned a quiet titter from the redhead.

"I'm going to be the one who crushes your skulls in if you don't move on." He threatened. **"Now, move."**

"Oh, yeah? You're as limp as a noodle." One of the huskier guys stepped forward, only a foot away from Ruth. "I bet I can split you in two."

"Yeah, or we can crush him in one go." Another joined in. "How's 5 against 1?"

"You'll regret ever touching me."

Chise noticed the amount of guys circling them. She suddenly felt uneasy, just now noticing how strong some of them actually were. Even if she could do well in a fight, it wouldn't end very nicely. She went to tug Ruth's sleeve and ask him to leave, but the leader came in before she could. He came only a few inches away from his face and grinned wickedly.

"We're not scared of you, you vampire." He said dryly.

"I'm not the one you should be afraid of."

The leader narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth to ask, but a shriek sounded from behind him. He jumped and turned, where everyone noticed Elias standing in the middle of the group. He was in his regular form, cloth purposely draped behind his skull so everyone could see. His eyes were glowing. Chise swore she saw something flash as he opened his jaw to let out a low growl.

Instinctively, the whole group edged away from him. Even the bulkiest ones had their jaws agape. A few sputters came from their mouths before they decided to bail, all running off in different directions. A few of them even screamed as they left. As soon as they were alone, Elias quickly formed himself into his façade and went to Chise's side.

"Are you two alright?"

"We're fine." She answered quickly, reaching to grab the bags from the ground. "Thanks, you two..."

"No need to thank us." Ruth crossed his arms. "A group of kids like that deserve to be threatened."

She smiled and handed both of them a couple of bags. They took it and accompanied her as they walked down the sidewalk. She certainly felt safer now, and a little proud that they had scared them off. In a way, she felt like she had intimidated them as well. They wouldn't be staring at her anymore, that's for sure.

"I didn't expect you to come out, Elias." Chise admitted quietly. He turned and tilted his head.

"Of course I did. They were harassing you. That isn't acceptable. And certainly not tolerated when I'm around."

Ruth chuckled. "For a moment, I thought they were going to actually jump me. I might've needed your help then."

"That would've been most unfortunate. Fractured skulls aren't on our errand list." Elias leaned down. "Speaking of which, where do we have to go now?"

"I think it'd be best if we went home." She said. "That's enough attention I can handle for one day."

Ruth nodded and nudged Elias, who nodded back. They went in the other direction and began their trip home. Elias purposely went a couple steps faster than Chise to cover the sun from her. She relaxed herself in his shadow and grinned. It was much cooler now. She took her free hand and held his gloved one.

"Am I really that good to look at?" She asked.

Ruth made a bunch of incoherent noises in return. She turned to Elias with an expectant look. He hesitated.

"I find you beautiful. You don't deserve to be looked at the way they did, however." He looked away. "You deserve to be admired with great fondness, not corrupt intent."

She mused over his words and grinned. "That...sounds romantic. Thank you."

She went on her tiptoes to lay a kiss on his shoulder. That was as far as she could reach. He smiled and closed his eyes, still appreciating the gesture. Ruth watched the two with a dull expression until Chise turned to him.

"You didn't answer my question, Ruth!"

"You look nice..." He murmured. She laughed and nudged him.


	33. Tantrums

There was only one thought crossing Chise Hatori's mind as she situated in the grasps of the tentacles that engulfed her. She took a heated breath as she peered into the hazy winter around them, feeling the coldness gently overlapping the heat from underneath her clothes and Elias' touch. The thought repeated to her, and as her eyes settled from her once-slit irises back to circular pupils, she almost let the words out of her mouth.

 _Well, this sucks._

Today was eventful, to say the least. She really looked forward to her time with her friend, Stella; she hadn't anticipated anything coming up with Elias. She had a few suspicions that _something_ would be up with him, but didn't expect a full-blown tantrum that seemed to come out of nowhere. Really, it was HER fault for following him all the way out here in the slightest aspiration that he'd knock it off once she knocked some sense into him. Part of her hoped he'd realize how foolish this was the moment he'd see her, but that was far from the truth.

Chise sighed when she felt one of the tentacles wrap around her arm. Even as relaxing as this was, she'd much rather be back with Stella at the house, and **not** dealing with a centuries-old mage leaving out of a fit of jealousy. She became frustrated and tried to motion one of the tentacles off, only to feel it tighten around her. This really was useless - any attempts to leave now was just a waste of energy.

She started, the bit of agitation in her voice apparent. "Elias..."

He was silent, but she could sense him; he was everywhere around her. She was wrapped up in _him_ , in _his_ grasp. She suddenly felt like a parent with her toddler, punishing them with warnings that fell on empty ears. She wondered if Elias even felt remorseful for anything now. For causing her to come out here just so he could have her for himself. If he realized how selfish he was being.

"I..." He started, but his voice drifted off into the wind. She waited a few minutes for him to continue, but he became quiet again. She refrained the urge to kick the snow out of frustration. Why was he being so DIFFICULT at a time like THIS!? He had her attention now, yet all he was doing with it was just upsetting her further.

"Why are you jealous of Stella?" She finally asked. Her voice felt like it cut through him as he flinched, but she felt no remorse. She really wanted to know, despite knowing that his answer would just upset her more.

"I'm not sure," He responded, much to her relief. "When I see you with her, I feel...upset. And angry. Just seeing her with you is-"

"-You're jealous." She finished. "You're jealous she has my attention and you don't. So you threw a tantrum and came all the way out here."

Her preciseness must've thrown him off, as he went quiet again. She felt his skull retreat behind her. His tentacles loosened for only a moment. She closed her eyes and took a sharp breath. She didn't want to leave, anyway. Not when she finally had him cornered like this. It was about time he realized how his actions affected her - and for her to speak up about them. It wasn't healthy to keep avoiding this or pretend it didn't happen.

"Elias, she's my friend. A good one, at that. I finally found someone near my age...well, not really _close_ , but close ENOUGH. All this time I've been surrounded by adults or old fae, and it's nice that I finally have a friend who kind of understands me."

She felt him stiffen. She placed a hand over one of his tentacles and gently set herself against him, momentarily enjoying the warmth from his feathers. It calmed her, and the anger that bottled up inside her slowly started to extinguish. It really wasn't the right approach to just blow up on him - that'd just be more destructive than anything. She should just get her point across and make him realize that this was all foolish.

"She's not going to take you away from me." She reminded him. "You and I are together, but that doesn't mean we can't be in the company of other people. Even if they're a little intimidating or we worry...we just need to have more faith in each other. You know I wouldn't betray you, and I know you'd do the same for me."

A long moment of silence endured after her voice stopped. She reached for his skull and grabbed the end, motioning it to her head and rested her forehead against his. Elias didn't pull away and they stayed like this for a little while. She even felt his grip on her completely cease, though she didn't attempt to leave.

"Is it...bad, to be jealous?" He asked softly.

"Sometimes, yes." Chise pulled away. "It can be really bad if you get upset over it. Because it leads to things like this." He looked away from her. "But sometimes it can be the right thing to feel. We can't tell what other people's intentions are, so when they actually feel like a threat, sometimes it's best to have that feeling."

Even she surprised herself by how erudite her words were coming out. She was taken aback by how much she was learning...how much she'd been through ever since her and Elias met. She hadn't the slightest idea what a relationship would be like, but it wasn't anything flawed like this. Even so, she still cherished her life now, and her and Elias just needed to...overcome these. Together.

"I see." He replied, withdrawing his tentacles from her body. "I'm...sorry, Chise."

She sighed and shivered when the snow came into contact with her skin. She doubted that he really learned anything or even came _close_ to understanding what was wrong with this ordeal. It was more of a brief acceptance accompanied by a reluctant compromise, and that wasn't what she wanted. She wanted him to understand and grow, so she could, too.

She stood up straight and crossed her arms, pointing at the ground in front of her abruptly. "Come here." She demanded.

A curious look passed Elias' orbs. He complied and slowly came to her, still in the form consisting of feathers and tentacles. Her composure faltered when she saw him peer up at her, but she stiffened herself again and tried to make her tone as authoritative as possible.

"Elias, sometimes the things you do are really selfish." She admitted. "And it hurts me. It affects me in bad ways. You're manipulatively possessive...and it makes me feel like you don't trust me with others. I haven't spoken about it before, but it's going on for awhile now."

He bowed his skull. She tilted it back up with her hand.

"You can trust me. I know you do, deep down. You just need to show it." She leaned down and gently kissed the top of his horn. "I might be busy with Stella while she's here, but after she's gone, I'll be with you again. I never left you to begin with."

Slowly, she could feel him forming back into himself under her grasp. She smiled, relieved, and watched as he finally stood in front of her. The look in his eyes was regretful. His posture was loosened over the embarrassment he felt. She went forward to grab his hand and held it close to her chest. It felt like she had just lifted a huge weight off of her shoulders. It was such a burden keeping this from him for so long...she didn't enjoy scolding Elias, but this might be the right direction for their relationship.

"I do not mean to be this way." He admits, clutching her hand. "To...hurt you with my jealousy. It's a dangerous emotion...a _human_ emotion. One I didn't think I was capable of...at least, in this way." His fingers entwine with hers. "I will try my hardest to not be affected by these things...and try to control myself."

"It's okay," She breathes, fluttering her eyes at him. It warmed her heart hearing how apologetic he was. "I know it's hard being jealous...I've felt this way before, actually. The same way you have."

"Is that true?"

"I've had my moments where I felt jealous when you were with...certain people." Chise's throat starts to burn. This was a bad subject... _god_ , she didn't want to admit this to him right _NOW_! "But I knew you'd come back to me, or, at least...you'd let _me_ come back to _you._ And I was right, because we'd be back together a little after I felt jealous. I had nothing to worry about."

She looks back at him slowly, her eyes twinkling. " **You** have nothing to worry about. We can get through this together. We just need to trust each other more and talk about what's making us jealous. And then you won't have to feel this way again."

He tips his head down, trailing his thumb over her cheek happily. "I would like that very much."

"So would I. Let's head back before it gets too cold...I'm sure they're wondering where we are right now."

They held their hands tighter as Chise led them out of the forest, walking through the snow together quietly. She was relieved she followed him all the way out here. She couldn't imagine how he'd be acting if she hadn't snapped some sense into him, or how her own anger would affect things. She felt...better, talking about these things with him. For the longest time, she feared about how he'd react; to the point where she was afraid to even bring them _up_ , but now she knew things were okay. They can talk about these things, and open up to each other now.

She felt tingly, and had to let it out in some way before they came home. "Elias...I love you."

"I love you too, Chise."

She held his arm closer to her before realizing they were just about home. They were still out of sight. He stopped her before they could go any further. She expected him to let go of her hand, but he brought it up closer to himself and turned to her. She recognized the look in his eyes - it was playful. Her heart leapt as she thought of what he'd tease her about now, especially at a time like this.

"I think we will talk about this more tonight. When we're in bed."

"Yeah," She agreed. "That'd be nice."

"Although, there's something that is confusing me, Chise..."

"What is it?"

"Who was I with that made you jealous?"

Her heart stopped. He looked at her expectantly, and before she could react, they heard Stella's voice come from afar. They both turned and found figures waiting impatiently for them outside, of which they recognized as Silver and Ruth. Stella was the one jumping up and waving her hand, looking more frantic than anything.

 _"Chise! Where did you go? You were gone forever!"_

She turned to Elias and gave him a sheepish smile, tugging his arm forward and walking towards the house. "Guess we have to come home."

While she dragged him back to the house, Elias asked her something that caught her off guard. "You will answer my question tonight, yes?"

Her cheeks burned and she flushed in embarrassment. "Yeah...Okay..."


	34. Dreaming

_**A/N:** Do ya'll like the new cover? I do. Been meaning to change that last one for like a century. xD _

_Anyway, it's been awhile._

 _Okay, maybe 'awhile' is an understatement? Either way, none of you know how sorry I am. That this story isn't frequently updated anymore or it's taken me months to finally add a chapter. And when I do, it's really short and not long enough to satisfy the ship needs. I know. I feel the pain, too._

 _I'm sure you all know why I left the fandom, the toxicity and all. The harassment. I haven't touched the manga in so long and I never even finished the Anime. I'm not up-to-date with the characters and chances are I've forgotten most parts of the story by this point. So with all this said, it really isn't reasonable for me to continue on with this story and act like I know what I'm doing._

 _But the problem is. I still love Elias and Chise. A **lot**. And I was thinking about this story the other day and decided to re-read it, and I found myself laughing and smiling and getting all giddy reading these chapters. I know all the writing mistakes and typos and I have some chaps in here I'm not proud of, but regardless, I wanted to write some more for this couple because they're one of my favorite OTPs._

 _I'm still taking requests, obviously, but I have around 30 people who have been waiting for...months. Probably a year? I closed my inbox and tried to vanish my blog, but I want people to enjoy this story like I have. I can't promise I'll be frequent with the updates again, but believe me, they're coming._

 _Thanks for your patience, and I'm sorry for the short chapter._

* * *

Elias was having a wonderful dream.

It was a warm afternoon in the streets of London. He was leaving a bistro with a smaller figure by his side, whose green eyes glistened in the sun as she laughed softly. He recognized that sound much too well. He could feel his heartbeat hammering against his chest as a smaller, softer hand came into his, entwining their fingers.

His body felt incredibly light. There wasn't a single burden carried on his shoulders, or the encumbered awareness of the people around them. All he could see was the strawberry-colored hair that led him into the crowds; the soft features of the face that looked at him and smiled. She closed her eyes, and for a moment, Elias didn't believe he was in a dream.

His thoughts drifted as he brushed through the figures, his orbs transfixed on the person guiding him. He had many of these dreams, didn't he? Where he was with no one else but Chise...always in places he once loathed being in. Where they existed in public but no one ever batted an eye - where he no longer had to rely on his facade or worry about the danger. It was just them and this endless figment of a world he could alter at any moment. But he didn't, because he only wanted to be with _her_.

"...Mph..."

There was something uncomfortable about the way he was sleeping. He knew it, but he did not want to leave his dream just yet. Waking up just to flip his pillow was not worth any moment of distraction of his dream with his wife. So he continued to dream and nestled further in the blankets, letting Chise lead him to wherever she wanted in those busy streets of London.

 _"Elias?"_

Her voice always sounded so angelic in his dreams. He practically melted as the figure looked behind and called for his name. But why should she call for him? He was right behind her. She was the one holding his hand, was she not? He wouldn't dare tear away from her.

"... _Yes_...?" He asks, his voice drowsy from unadulterated bliss.

She looks at him, but doesn't say anything further. He gets lost gazing into her eyes - the emerald colors blending together to create a wonderful, jade-like shade. His grip goes weak the longer he stares into them, and he feels his gloved hand start to loosen in hers. He tries desperately to not let it slip, for the last thing he'd want was to lose her. His heartbeat quickens as he begins to panic.

...

 _"Ow!"_

The magus is torn painfully from his dreams as he feels a pinch in his right side. He wakes with a start and practically jumps out of the blankets. When he turns his skull to find what woke him, he sees those same eyes staring at him from the dark. Through the haziness of his sockets, he recognizes the green and his body relaxes.

"I'm sorry!" There's that same angelic voice from his dream as well. "I didn't meant to pinch you...you weren't waking up, and I was just worried that-"

" ** _Mph._** "

Without saying a word, Elias brings himself forward and wraps Chise in his arms. He brings them both on top of the pillow and nestles her in his grip. He inhales her scent before resting again, wanting to return to the heaven that was his dream. To let his wife take him wherever she wanted through the busy crowds of London, never letting go of his hand.

"Hey! Elias!"

He groans when her voice wakes him again, opening his orbs with some reluctance. He finds Chise about to pinch his arm before he quickly moves it from her, rolling on his side so he's facing the wall. He takes a moment to rub his skull and blink a few times, trying to get his view to focus. He may just have overslept, which explained why she wanted to wake him.

"What time is it?" He asks. The room is dark, but they had the blinds closed.

"It's...early..." She mutters.

" _How_ early?"

"3 A.M."

Upon this information, he flips over and repeats what he did before, wrapping his wife in his arms and nestling on the pillow again. Before he can sleep again, however, Chise squirms out of his grip and sits up on the bed. The coldness envelops the side of his body and he makes an unpleasant noise. When he looks at his wife, he finds her arms crossed and her lower lip protruded, looking at him impatiently.

"What is it, Chise?" He can't help but notice how tired he still is. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"Well, _no_." Her eyes dart away from his. She starts to rub the side of her arm, looking a little guilty for waking him up.

"You cannot sleep?"

She looks back at him and nods. Elias slowly sits up in the bed and yawns. He'd much like to return to his dream right now and sleep in, but she was more important. The real Chise was a lot better than the imaginary one in his dream, after all. She takes this opportunity to settle herself in his lap, resting the side of her head against his chest. The same position they usually go in whenever she has issues sleeping.

"Are you too hot? Too cold?" She shakes her head both times. "Or are you just not sleepy?"

"I...I guess I was just missing you."

"But I'm right next to you." She bites her lip and looks away. He motions it back with his hand. "Chise, I'm _right here_."

"I know you are. You just looked like you were having a really good dream, but I was feeling a little lonely, and...and I just feel bad for waking you up. I mean, I could've just gotten Ruth...I really shouldn't have pinched you."

He tsks before holding her in both of his arms. What she was saying sounded ridiculous. Wasn't it his duty as her husband to keep her company? If she wanted to wake him from his dream just to see him, then he had no problem with that. Spending physical time with her was much more important than dreaming of anything else.

He rests his skull on top of her head gently. "You know you are my first priority. I've told you before to come to me whenever you need me. I see no issue doing that now."

She tenses in his grip. "You're not mad I woke you up?"

"Far from it. I was dreaming of _you_."

She gets warmer in his hands, and when he checks, he sees that she is blushing. He nestles her head with the bottom of his jaw before laying them both back down. She appears to be more at ease, which is what he wanted. If she was comfortable enough, she'd fall asleep right on him. He wouldn't complain if that happened, to say at the least.

"I-I dream of you a lot, too." She confesses, so quietly he almost doesn't hear it. "That's when I sleep in because...I don't want to stop dreaming of you."

"Then we are similar. I did not wake up easily because I still wanted to dream of you." He thinks about it and adds, "-That is why I sleep in so often. Because you're usually in my dreams."

She was as red as her hair by this point. He felt her start to tremble in his grip, so he held on just a little tighter. When he began rubbing her back, she exhaled against his neck and settled against him completely. A very good sign. Maybe she was starting to get sleepy?

She giggled a little. "I just thought you liked to sleep..."

"I do, but I find it's harder to leave my bed when you're all I'm thinking about." He finds her burning when he rubs his thumb against her nose. "But it is much easier to wake up when you're the one waking me. It's like dreaming of an angel and seeing her when you open your eyes."

"Elias..."

"Yes?"

"I..." Her grip on his pajamas tightened. "I think I'm ready to go to sleep now."

He is relieved at this news, and settles himself beside her so he can hold Chise close. "Good."

It takes a little longer before the magus can fall asleep again. In this period of time, he watches his wife as she nestles beside him. Her grip eventually loosens and it is then he knows she's asleep. She is still wearing the same smile as before, yet unlike other nights where it eventually fades, this one stays. He moves his skull closer to her face before finally shutting his orbs, relaxing in the blankets and listening to Chise's gentle snoring.

This time, he dreams the two of them are nearby a lake, like when they took that walk in the forest. He doesn't recall what they talk about in the dream, but he remembers them gazing out into the stars for what seems like hours, with her on his chest and their hands clutched together. He does not want to let go, nor does he ever want the dream to end.

But when he hears her voice again in the morning, opening his eyes to find her smiling and pulling him out of bed, he's glad it does.


	35. As a Wife Should

"Are you sure you can get it?"

The sound of Elias' voice, usually so warm and curious, was annoying at that moment. Chise Hatori blinked a few times as she arranged her hands in a mixture of positions, attempting to get the tie into a proper knot. She was faced with many difficulties from the start, including the confusion on which direction to pull, which to slip through, and her desperate attempt to avoid twisting it or ruining the fabric in any way.

"I'm trying!" Was the helpless squeal that came from her mouth.

The magus stared at her from above, but resorted to the silence he'd been giving her for several minutes now. Her skin grew hotter as she continued this difficult task, her headache worsening every time she went a wrong direction or pulled the opposite way. Her frustration was felt by her familiar, who was sitting in a nearby chair watching them intently. He felt the same as Elias at that moment, both sharing some sort of secondhand embarrassment for the woman as she struggled to tie a rather simple knot. They both knew the magus himself could complete this task in only a few minutes, but instead let his wife humor him by attempting to do it for him.

"Why does it matter, anyway?" Ruth inquired from the side. "Just have the Silky do it for you. It doesn't have to be done by you specifically."

"Yes, it does," She insisted. "It's a wife thing. You wouldn't understand."

 _Maybe I wouldn't,_ he thinks to himself, more or less to her as well. "-Don't put the poor man through another 10 minutes of this. It looks very painful."

"Ruth, you're not helping!"

Her husband absorbed their conversation and decided to butt in, moving downwards a little and showing Chise some hand movements as to help her. He even went to the extent of telling her what to do, which more or less made the redhead even more embarrassed than she felt before.

"Bring it around to the top and slide it above, like this-" He demonstrated this to her with his gloved hands. "And then you will slip it through the loop, like this-"

As she attempted to do what she was told, she can't help but dwell on this in her head. What had she gotten herself into, insisting to do a thing like this? Was it really worth the minutes of torture learning how to make a simple knot for her husband's tie? The worst part of this, truly, is the fact that she couldn't do it. Not by herself or the simple process of learning - Elias had to tell HER how to do it, which really just defeats the whole _purpose_ of doing it FOR him!

Ashamedly, she gets the knot correct by listening to him and copying the movements he did with his hands. Seeing the tie properly knotted on his suited body, Chise takes a step back and frowns. As wonderful as he looks in this attire, and how quick her heartbeat turns just seeing him in it, her eyes can't stop looking at the tie she has been struggling with for a near half-hour now. The magus doesn't pick up on this look in her eyes and stands up properly, bringing his hands behind his back.

"Well?" He asks the two of them as he stands there awkwardly. "Do I look appropriate?"

"Of course you do." She replied to him with a sigh. "You look amazing..."

"You do, too." The dog points out from beside her. "That dress matches with Ainsworth. You two should be happy you're going somewhere as a couple."

"-Says the one that didn't struggle with a knot for a long time! I'd be happy, but-"

"It is alright, Chise. You simply need more practice." Elias told her cheerfully. "I will be more than happy to ask the Silky to show you how to properly-"

"-Don't bring Silky into this! Please!"

"Why not?"

"Because it's embarrassing that I don't know how to do this." Her eyes fall to the floor. "I'm sorry I couldn't, Elias, I just-"

"It's not that big of a deal. Please, calm down." He comes forward to rest his hand on her shoulder. "I suppose you could learn from me instead? I am your teacher, and I suppose teaching you how to properly knot a necktie would just be an additional lesson?"

"This wasn't about learning how to do it. It was about helping you as a wife, so you wouldn't have to do it yourself...doing something as little as tying your tie is something romantic, I guess. I see couples doing it all the time."

"In that case, I'm going to assume it isn't romantic for me to teach you how to do it?"

She looked away. "Not exactly..."

"Well, then I guess we can drop this, for now." He offered her his arm. "I think we should get going if we're going to make it on time."

Chise grew quiet and nodded solemnly, slithering her hand into the gap and resting her arm on his. "I think so, too..."

The two of them leave side-by-side, and as they do, Ruth can't help but shake his head. The things she does for him...how much she puts herself through just to please him as his wife. If only she knew how insignificant things like these didn't matter to Ainsworth - and if only he could tell her. Sometimes, he wishes for more than anything for these two to be more honest and open with each other. _For something as simple as tying his necktie..._ He scoffs.

* * *

"I think I got it!"

The fae's beloved robin cheers gleefully to herself as she jumps up in joy, having made a proper tie. But this one wasn't on her husband - it was on herself. An hour of instantaneous practice staring at herself in the mirror, watching the Silky demonstrate several hand moments and directions, memorizing the types of knots and which ones Elias liked...An hour, and in this time, she finally feels satisfied with this new knowledge and stares at the knot she made in the mirror proudly. She soon finds a pink figure come from behind her, and watch as she whips around in surprise.

"Oh! Silky! I wanted to thank you." She bowed down in thanks. "I couldn't have done this without your help."

She feels the brownie's stare pierce through her skull. She looks up and finds her eyes blinking at her without much emotion. Even without words, she understood what she wanted to say completely.

"I know I said I wanted to do this for Elias, but...I guess, I just don't like the insecurities I have not knowing how to do something as simple as this." She rubbed the back of her neck and frowned. "So many wives know how to do these things for their husbands, but I don't know the first thing about so many of them..."

Silky bowed her head. A sign of acceptance. Chise grinned and began untying the knot around her neck. She took it off without much hassle and set it aside, imagining herself doing this for Elias already and sensing his approval. How proud he'll be when she shows him she knows how to do it...the simple but immense pleasure he'll have not spending any time tying it on his own. That she can contribute whenever the two of them go out together. She never knew how something so trivial could make her feel so accomplished.

She turned around and found the brownie still staring at her. There was something judgemental about her eye...which was unusual for her. She usually had this understanding and patient look in them, but now, Chise sensed something more...questioning in them. As if she didn't believe her explanation on this issue. She bit her lip and looked around nervously, attempting to avoid eye contact.

"Is there...something you want to tell me?"

Silky remained silent, her eyes still fixated on her. This was about the time Ruth finally surfaced from her shadow, giving his familiar a similar look. Her posture deflated at both of their judgemental looks, and began rubbing the side of her arm without a word. Ruth finally decided to speak up, sharing a glance with the Silky before bringing his full attention on the girl in front of him.

"What I think she wants to say is...you shouldn't have to be worrying about roles like these." She opens her mouth to rebut but he stops her. "-I know you just want to be a good wife to Ainsworth and do these things that other couples do, but the two of you are...different. A good different. Just because you're married doesn't mean you have to be obligated to doing these senseless things."

"I don't think tying something for him is senseless. It's just helpful, and that's what I want to be, after all the trouble I've put him through...using so much magic and how irresponsible I've been...I-I just thought, by doing these things, and helping him out in these small ways, it'd show him that I'm getting better?"

Ruth stepped forward and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Chise, you've _always_ been good. Irresponsible? Yes. Not willing to listen to others at times? Also yes-" She glared at him. "-But he loves you regardless of these things. I don't think you stepping in to make a knot on his tie is going to make any difference in his feelings for you."

She looked down, taking in this information. Her green eyes looked very emotional, and both Ruth and Silky shared a sympathetic look. It pained him to point out these insecurities of hers and having to assure her like this in front of company, but he truly hopes she'll take it in this time. Instead of being so insistent on doing things her way and finally taking some outside advice for once on her relationship. She took a deep breath before coming forward to hug Ruth, smiling softly.

"Thank you. I-I guess you're right. This was silly of me to do, spending so much time learning this when it really doesn't matter. I guess I was just feeling so unsure of myself..."

"Let's be honest, you and Ainsworth? Not a typical couple." He chuckled to himself. "I'm pretty sure the two of you stray away from many stereotypes as it is. I don't see any reason why you'd want to live up to any human expectations when you're married to _him_."

She giggled along. "You make a good point, Ruth. How long have you been keeping this to yourself?"

He puffs out his cheeks, trying not to think of how long he _has_. "-Doesn't matter. Just...be yourself, and don't do anything embarrassing like this again. It's not the best feeling when you're sharing your insecurities with me."

"I promise I won't."

* * *

A few weeks pass by until Elias and Chise are invited to a formal matter elsewhere. Before the magus can even begin to tie the knot on his necktie, his wife quickly came up to him and did it for him. In a quick manner this time, nowhere near as clumsy or unsure as she had been before. As she takes a step back for him to admire it, he lets out a chuckle of his own as he traces his gloved hand along the tie.

"Someone's been practicing, hasn't she?"

She blushed, looking away from him. "Silky showed me a long time ago, and I just happened to remember-"

"-It feels nice." He interrupts, flattening down his suit. "Having you do that for me...it's like you knew what I wanted before I did."

"Re-really? You think it's... _nice_?" She looks at him from the side. "Not 'unnecessary' or 'senseless'..?"

"Why would that be?" He tilted his skull. "You tying it for me will help us get there a minute faster, won't it? I'm glad she showed you. It is very helpful."

"Thank you, Elias...and you're welcome..."

He offers his arm to her, but this time, Chise doesn't hesitate to slip her hand through and happily cling onto his side. He lead her outside of the door, noticing an extra kick in his wife's step. And in the corners of her shadow, Ruth smiles to himself and notices it, too. He feels none of her insecurities nor the looming desperation lingering anywhere in their connection. She is content, and rather happy.

 _Maybe it was just a wife thing..._


End file.
